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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 120 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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. net — after costs
  3. tear — to rip
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a city
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bound — certain
  8. hand — help
  9. bound — obliged
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. bore — to tire
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bore — to drill
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. snap — to click
  18. bound — tied together
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. net — for catching
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. net — in sport
  24. hand — part of the body

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