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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: tear · mouse · net · craft · dip · cold · charge · pitcher

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  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. tear — to rip
  3. craft — boats
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. dip — to sink
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. tear — from crying
  9. net — in sport
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. charge — electricity
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. charge — in control
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. net — for catching
  21. charge — a price
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. craft — a skill
  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