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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: net · rash · racket · chair · cue · mark · bass · kid

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. rash — a series
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — a leader
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. rash — hasty
  8. cue — a hint
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. kid — to tease
  15. mark — a trace
  16. cue — for pool
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bass — the fish
  19. net — in sport
  20. kid — child
  21. cue — a signal
  22. net — for catching
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. bass — low music

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