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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  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 — in sport
  2. saw — the tool
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. kid — to tease
  6. saw — the tool
  7. net — after costs
  8. can — to be able to
  9. rash — hasty
  10. can — a tin
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. kid — child
  13. net — for catching
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. fall — to drop
  16. can — a tin
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — a series
  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