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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: rash · press · wound · net · bore · last · game · hand

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  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. wound — an injury
  2. hand — in cards
  3. game — a match
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. rash — hasty
  6. net — after costs
  7. game — wild animals
  8. press — to push
  9. last — finally
  10. rash — a series
  11. last — final
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. press — a publisher
  15. bore — to tire
  16. press — newspapers
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. bore — to drill
  19. hand — help
  20. net — in sport
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. wound — an injury
  23. last — to go on
  24. net — for catching

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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