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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. net — for catching
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. net — after costs
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. net — in sport
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. capital — money
  11. wind — moving air
  12. capital — a city
  13. pit — in a race
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. rush — hurry
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. lean — to bend
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. date — the fruit
  24. wind — moving air

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