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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. fall — the season
  5. march — the month
  6. spring — the season
  7. rush — hurry
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. spring — of water
  11. net — in sport
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. spring — a coil
  14. march — the month
  15. net — after costs
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. march — music
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. deal — to handle
  22. chair — a leader
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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