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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 120 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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. net — after costs
  4. net — for catching
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. shower — to wash
  7. foot — a measure
  8. band — a music group
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bore — to tire
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. bear — the animal
  13. band — a ring
  14. march — music
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. bore — to drill
  18. rest — what's left
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. rest — a break
  22. shower — rain
  23. rest — what's left
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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