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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: mate · object · rash · net · bear · bat · cell · fork

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. object — a thing
  3. net — for catching
  4. rash — a series
  5. bear — the animal
  6. mate — a partner
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. mate — to breed
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. rash — hasty
  11. cell — a phone
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. cell — in biology
  16. net — in sport
  17. bear — the animal
  18. mate — a friend
  19. bat — the animal
  20. object — to protest
  21. net — after costs
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. fork — in a road

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