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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. date — the fruit
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — for catching
  12. stock — goods
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. net — after costs
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. kick — in football
  18. stock — shares
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. game — a match
  21. hand — help
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hide — to keep secret

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