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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 120 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: bound · net · rash · drill · clip · sharp · shower · leaves

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. rash — a series
  4. net — in sport
  5. rash — hasty
  6. net — for catching
  7. net — after costs
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. bound — obliged
  11. shower — to wash
  12. drill — the tool
  13. shower — rain
  14. sharp — clever
  15. drill — a practice
  16. clip — to cut
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. bound — certain
  20. bound — tied together
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — a video
  24. rash — on the skin

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