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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: spring · lie · net · game · chest · lean · mate · fan

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. chest — a box
  4. net — after costs
  5. mate — to breed
  6. chest — of your body
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. spring — a coil
  9. net — in sport
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. mate — a friend
  16. game — wild animals
  17. lean — to bend
  18. chest — of your body
  19. lean — thin
  20. lie — to recline
  21. game — a match
  22. spring — the season
  23. spring — of water
  24. mate — a partner

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