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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: ball · net · fine · perch · spring · mine · drill · cue

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. fine — all right
  3. ball — a dance
  4. mine — for digging
  5. drill — a practice
  6. cue — a signal
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. net — after costs
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. fine — high quality
  12. ball — a great time
  13. net — in sport
  14. cue — a hint
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. spring — a coil
  17. drill — army training
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cue — for pool
  20. spring — of water
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. drill — the tool
  23. spring — the season
  24. net — for catching

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