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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: cold · ground · board · fall · fork · can · net · racket

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. fall — the season
  3. net — for catching
  4. fall — to drop
  5. board — to get on
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. net — after costs
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — the earth
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. board — a committee
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. can — to be able to
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. ground — crushed
  19. can — a tin
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fall — to drop
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. net — in sport
  24. racket — for tennis

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