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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: arm · bore · bowl · hand · dip · cold · club · net

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. club — for golf
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — to drill
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. net — after costs
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. net — in sport
  16. dip — to sink
  17. cold — not warm
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. hand — in cards
  20. club — for dancing
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. cold — an illness
  24. club — a group

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