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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. net — after costs
  3. snap — to click
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. pit — in a race
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. ground — crushed
  11. ground — a position
  12. net — for catching
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. ground — the earth
  16. pit — a hole
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. net — in sport
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. cue — a signal
  22. shower — to wash
  23. cue — for pool
  24. shower — rain

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