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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 124 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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — in sport
  6. game — wild animals
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. cue — a hint
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. land — a country
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cap — a hat
  15. season — of the year
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. land — ground
  18. land — to come down
  19. game — a match
  20. season — in sport
  21. cue — for pool
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. cap — of ice
  24. cue — a signal

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