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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  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 — in sport
  2. net — after costs
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. clip — for paper
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. rest — what's left
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. fall — to drop
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. clip — a video
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. rest — what's left
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. fall — the season
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. net — for catching
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. deal — to handle
  21. rest — a break
  22. clip — to cut
  23. scale — size or range
  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