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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 120 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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. net — after costs
  3. firm — decided
  4. firm — a company
  5. rest — what's left
  6. net — in sport
  7. shower — rain
  8. face — part of the head
  9. rash — hasty
  10. net — for catching
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. shower — to wash
  15. mine — for digging
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. firm — steady
  20. rash — a series
  21. face — to confront
  22. face — to point toward
  23. rest — what's left
  24. wake — a trail

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