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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. net — after costs
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. field — a subject
  6. bank — for money
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. field — for sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. ball — a great time
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cap — a lid
  18. cap — a hat
  19. field — farmland
  20. bank — of a river
  21. net — in sport
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. bank — for money
  24. ball — a round shape

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