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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 refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — for catching
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. mug — a face
  8. mark — a grade
  9. scale — in music
  10. ground — the earth
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — a coil
  13. ground — crushed
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. scale — size or range
  16. mark — a trace
  17. ground — a position
  18. spring — of water
  19. net — in sport
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — a video
  22. mug — to rob
  23. clip — for paper
  24. ruler — for measuring

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