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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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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  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. pitcher — a jug
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. net — after costs
  5. club — for dancing
  6. club — for golf
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. club — a group
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. spell — letters
  15. kick — in football
  16. bound — obliged
  17. net — in sport
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. spell — a short time
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. spell — magic
  22. bound — certain
  23. bound — tied together
  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