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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: stand · kid · bore · ground · row · rash · deal · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. deal — to handle
  3. rash — hasty
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — to tease
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. net — in sport
  8. stand — to bear
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — a series
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. kid — child
  15. row — a line
  16. ground — crushed
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. bore — to tire
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. ground — a position
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. row — to paddle
  23. bore — to drill
  24. net — for catching

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