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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. net — in sport
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. spring — the season
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. foot — a measure
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. press — a publisher
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. press — newspapers
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. capital — money
  20. capital — a city
  21. press — to push
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. net — after costs

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