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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 is an ace ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. net — in sport
  3. net — after costs
  4. bat — the animal
  5. net — for catching
  6. kick — in football
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. club — a group
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. lie — to recline
  11. club — for golf
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — what's left
  14. capital — money
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. club — for dancing
  17. capital — a city
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. rest — a break

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