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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: bass · tear · net · toast · lie · game · fan · rash

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. rash — hasty
  3. game — wild animals
  4. tear — from crying
  5. net — after costs
  6. bass — low music
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — a series
  11. lie — to recline
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bass — the fish
  15. toast — bread
  16. game — a match
  17. net — for catching
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — an untruth

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