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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 116 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bound — certain
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. net — after costs
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. rest — a break
  10. pop — soda
  11. wind — moving air
  12. rest — what's left
  13. wind — moving air
  14. pop — to visit
  15. cold — not warm
  16. sharp — clever
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. pop — music
  19. net — in sport
  20. bound — obliged
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. bound — tied together
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. rest — what's left

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