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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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. staff — a stick
  3. field — a subject
  4. bank — for money
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bear — the animal
  7. staff — employees
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. field — for sport
  10. sharp — clever
  11. net — in sport
  12. bank — of a river
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. staff — employees
  15. field — farmland
  16. hand — in cards
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. net — after costs
  21. hand — help
  22. bank — for money
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bear — the animal

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