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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. net — in sport
  4. firm — decided
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. net — for catching
  7. firm — a company
  8. hand — in cards
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. net — after costs
  12. hand — help
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. prune — to trim
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — to tire
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. firm — steady
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cell — in a prison

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