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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. hand — in cards
  3. march — the month
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. march — the month
  6. hand — help
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. ground — the earth
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. file — a tool
  11. lie — to recline
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. ground — a position
  14. file — a line of people
  15. march — music
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. ground — crushed
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — for catching
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. file — a document
  24. hand — part of the body

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