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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: row · track · deal · squash · net · cap · bore · sharp

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. squash — to crush
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. sharp — clever
  6. net — for catching
  7. cap — of ice
  8. squash — the sport
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. row — a line
  12. row — to paddle
  13. net — in sport
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. cap — a hat
  16. track — a path
  17. bore — to tire
  18. cap — a lid
  19. track — to keep track
  20. track — a song
  21. deal — to handle
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bore — to drill
  24. sharp — exactly

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