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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: clip · firm · ground · net · ball · roll · shower · lean

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. firm — a company
  5. net — for catching
  6. clip — for paper
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ball — a dance
  9. clip — to cut
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. firm — decided
  12. clip — a video
  13. lean — thin
  14. ground — a position
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. shower — to wash
  17. lean — to bend
  18. roll — a list
  19. roll — a cake
  20. shower — rain
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. firm — steady
  23. ball — a great time
  24. ground — crushed

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