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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: court · arm · current · bear · roll · stand · net · hide

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bear — the animal
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. current — electric
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. roll — a cake
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. court — of a king
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of law
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. net — in sport
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. roll — a list
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. current — of water
  22. net — for catching
  23. stand — to bear
  24. current — happening now

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