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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: ground · net · file · racket · patient · cold · hide · lash

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. file — a document
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. ground — a position
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. ground — the earth
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. net — after costs
  11. net — in sport
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. file — a line of people
  17. cold — an illness
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. net — for catching
  20. file — a tool
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. cold — not warm

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