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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. bore — to tire
  3. net — in sport
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. bore — to drill
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. chest — of your body
  8. last — finally
  9. chest — a box
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — of the year
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. stock — shares
  14. last — final
  15. chest — of your body
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. last — to go on
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. net — for catching
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. stock — goods
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. temple — a place of worship

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