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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. net — for catching
  5. bank — for money
  6. kid — to tease
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. swing — in golf
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. squash — to crush
  11. swing — music
  12. squash — the sport
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. row — a line
  15. bank — for money
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. kid — child
  18. net — after costs
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bank — of a river
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. swing — to play on
  24. row — a quarrel

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