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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. net — for catching
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bound — tied together
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. net — in sport
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bound — obliged
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. bass — low music
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bound — certain
  24. patient — a sick person

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