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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. rest — what's left
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. bound — tied together
  6. rest — a break
  7. fine — all right
  8. net — for catching
  9. rest — what's left
  10. net — in sport
  11. fine — high quality
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. file — a line of people
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a tool
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bound — certain

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