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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. drill — the tool
  3. present — there
  4. net — after costs
  5. net — in sport
  6. snap — to click
  7. band — a ring
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. saw — the tool
  11. band — a music group
  12. present — a gift
  13. present — the time now
  14. saw — the tool
  15. drill — army training
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. swing — in golf
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. drill — a practice
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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