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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: net · wound · object · straw · pop · mouse · dip · kid

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. pop — to visit
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. kid — child
  8. net — for catching
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. object — an aim
  13. pop — soda
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. pop — music
  17. kid — to tease
  18. object — a thing
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. net — in sport
  21. object — to protest
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. dip — to sink
  24. dip — to dunk

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