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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: net · court · rush · bore · chest · snap

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. court — of a king
  4. net — after costs
  5. rush — hurry
  6. court — of law
  7. bore — to tire
  8. snap — to click
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. court — for sport
  12. chest — a box
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bore — to drill
  16. net — in sport
  17. chest — of your body
  18. snap — to snap out of it

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