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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mark — a trace
  3. sharp — clever
  4. net — after costs
  5. shower — to wash
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mark — a grade
  9. net — in sport
  10. pass — a permit
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. rash — a series
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. rash — hasty
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. perch — the fish
  23. shower — rain
  24. net — for catching

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