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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. capital — a city
  9. net — for catching
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. rash — a series
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. net — after costs
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bound — certain
  16. chest — of your body
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. capital — money
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. bound — tied together
  21. chest — a box
  22. rash — hasty
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. jam — a tight spot

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