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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: bay · net · land · lean · tear · club · spring · racket

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — after costs
  3. lean — to bend
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. net — for catching
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. spring — the season
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. spring — a coil
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. club — a group
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. land — a country
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. tear — from crying
  19. land — ground
  20. club — for dancing
  21. land — to come down
  22. lean — thin
  23. club — for golf
  24. spring — of water

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