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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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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: bound · cabinet · racket · lie · mine · rule · kid · net

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. kid — child
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mine — for digging
  6. rule — a law
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. bound — certain
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. kid — to tease
  15. rule — government
  16. lie — to recline
  17. bound — obliged
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — in sport
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. bound — tied together
  24. rule — to rule out

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