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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: plane · fine · rash · mine · hide · last · net · chair

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. net — for catching
  4. mine — for digging
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. rash — hasty
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. fine — all right
  9. last — to go on
  10. chair — a leader
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. plane — a tool
  14. rash — a series
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. fine — high quality
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. last — finally
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — in sport

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