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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 124 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. band — a ring
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. net — after costs
  7. net — for catching
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. net — in sport
  11. mate — to breed
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. mate — a partner
  14. dip — to sink
  15. mate — a friend
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. band — a music group
  19. hand — in cards
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. racket — for tennis

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