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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. rash — a series
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. rash — hasty
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. fall — to drop
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. fall — the season
  11. squash — the sport
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. net — for catching
  14. squash — to crush
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. court — for sport
  17. court — of a king
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. fall — to drop
  21. net — after costs
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. court — of law
  24. squash — the vegetable

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