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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 116 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
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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: nail · tear · fork · hand · last · pass · fine · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  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. net — after costs
  2. fine — all right
  3. last — final
  4. pass — a permit
  5. hand — in cards
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. last — finally
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. fine — high quality
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. tear — from crying
  17. net — in sport
  18. last — to go on
  19. hand — help
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — to eat with
  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