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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. club — a group
  3. chest — a box
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bear — the animal
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. face — part of the head
  9. face — to confront
  10. net — in sport
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. bear — the animal
  13. file — a line of people
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. club — for dancing
  17. file — a tool
  18. face — to point toward
  19. club — for golf
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. file — a document
  22. net — for catching
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. patient — a sick person

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