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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. kick — in football
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. mug — a face
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bass — the fish
  7. saw — the tool
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. board — to get on
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. saw — the tool
  13. net — after costs
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. net — in sport
  16. net — for catching
  17. bass — low music
  18. mug — to rob
  19. mug — a cup
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. board — a committee
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — not warm

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