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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. hand — help
  3. cap — of ice
  4. ground — the earth
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cap — a hat
  7. tube — a container
  8. court — of law
  9. net — for catching
  10. ground — a position
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. cell — in biology
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. tube — the underground
  15. wake — a trail
  16. ground — crushed
  17. net — after costs
  18. court — of a king
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. cap — a lid
  23. court — for sport
  24. hand — in cards

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