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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. last — final
  6. last — finally
  7. can — to be able to
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. shower — to wash
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. band — a music group
  14. shower — rain
  15. can — a tin
  16. last — to go on
  17. deal — to handle
  18. net — in sport
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. band — a ring
  21. net — for catching
  22. can — a tin
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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