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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. march — the month
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. root — of a plant
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. cue — a signal
  7. court — for sport
  8. net — for catching
  9. court — of law
  10. mug — to rob
  11. cue — for pool
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. march — music
  14. mug — a face
  15. net — in sport
  16. tube — a container
  17. root — of a word
  18. root — the cause
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. mug — a cup
  21. cue — a hint
  22. court — of a king
  23. tube — the underground
  24. march — the month

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