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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 116 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 was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. hand — in cards
  5. net — after costs
  6. cell — in biology
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. cell — a phone
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. net — in sport
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. pound — a weight
  13. race — a contest
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. race — humankind
  16. rush — hurry
  17. race — the arms race
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. cap — a lid
  20. cap — of ice
  21. net — for catching
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. cap — a hat
  24. hand — help

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