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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. wound — an injury
  6. rest — a break
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. rest — what's left
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. saw — the tool
  11. lie — to recline
  12. wound — an injury
  13. scale — in music
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. saw — the tool
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rest — what's left
  22. net — in sport
  23. pitch — completely
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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