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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. net — after costs
  6. rush — hurry
  7. chip — to eat
  8. dip — to sink
  9. capital — a city
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. net — for catching
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. capital — money
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. season — in sport
  16. chip — for betting
  17. season — of the year
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. pound — a weight
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. chip — in a computer

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