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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. hand — in cards
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. face — to point toward
  6. net — for catching
  7. drill — army training
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. face — to confront
  10. scale — size or range
  11. drill — the tool
  12. lean — to bend
  13. face — part of the head
  14. court — for sport
  15. chair — a leader
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. hand — help
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. court — of law
  20. scale — in music
  21. net — in sport
  22. drill — a practice
  23. lean — thin
  24. court — of a king

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