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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. net — for catching
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. craft — boats
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. field — farmland
  13. bat — the animal
  14. field — for sport
  15. game — a match
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. game — wild animals
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. net — in sport
  21. kick — in football
  22. craft — a skill
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. field — a subject

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