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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. tube — a container
  3. court — for sport
  4. band — a music group
  5. kid — to tease
  6. net — after costs
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. mug — a cup
  9. net — for catching
  10. court — of a king
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. mug — a face
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. court — of law
  18. mug — to rob
  19. tube — the underground
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. band — a ring
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. kid — child
  24. arm — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com