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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 116 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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. can — a tin
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. can — a tin
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. tube — a container
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — clever
  13. tube — the underground
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. chair — a leader
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. can — to be able to
  19. net — in sport
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. shower — rain
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. shower — to wash
  24. net — for catching

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