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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. kid — to tease
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — after costs
  6. pop — music
  7. staff — employees
  8. pop — soda
  9. bank — for money
  10. drill — army training
  11. court — of a king
  12. drill — a practice
  13. kid — child
  14. bank — for money
  15. staff — employees
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. court — of law
  18. pop — to visit
  19. court — for sport
  20. net — in sport
  21. staff — a stick
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. drill — the tool
  24. lash — an eyelash

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