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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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. kick — in football
  3. net — after costs
  4. spring — the season
  5. firm — a company
  6. shower — to wash
  7. net — in sport
  8. lie — to recline
  9. firm — decided
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. firm — steady
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. shower — rain
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pound — a weight
  24. spring — of water

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