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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. hand — in cards
  3. mug — to rob
  4. kid — child
  5. net — after costs
  6. face — part of the head
  7. mug — a face
  8. face — to point toward
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. face — to confront
  11. net — in sport
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. kid — to tease
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. net — for catching
  18. mug — a cup
  19. hand — help
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. stand — to bear
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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