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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. cell — in biology
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. cell — a phone
  5. present — a gift
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. present — the time now
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. rock — music
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. chair — a leader
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. kid — to tease
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. net — in sport
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. net — for catching
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. present — there
  24. rock — a stone

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