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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 116 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. mate — a partner
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. key — for a lock
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. club — for dancing
  7. mate — a friend
  8. club — a group
  9. club — for golf
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. net — after costs
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. key — in music
  16. key — the most important part
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. net — in sport
  19. mate — to breed
  20. cold — an illness
  21. wake — a trail
  22. cold — not warm
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. kick — in football

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