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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: roll · fan · last · kid · net · sharp · dip · row

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. roll — a cake
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. last — final
  6. roll — a list
  7. sharp — clever
  8. kid — to tease
  9. net — after costs
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kid — child
  16. last — finally
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. net — in sport
  21. last — to go on
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. row — a line
  24. dip — to sink

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