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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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Word bank
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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: present · mate · shower · net · chair · cabinet

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. chair — a leader
  4. mate — a partner
  5. net — in sport
  6. net — after costs
  7. present — a gift
  8. present — the time now
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. mate — a friend
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. shower — to wash
  14. present — there
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. mate — to breed
  18. shower — rain

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