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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. club — a group
  5. mug — a cup
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. mug — a face
  9. pop — soda
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. pop — to visit
  12. wake — a trail
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. mug — to rob
  16. tear — from crying
  17. net — for catching
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. club — for golf
  20. club — for dancing
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. net — in sport
  23. pop — music
  24. leaves — of a tree

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