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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. net — after costs
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. spring — a coil
  5. stand — to bear
  6. row — a line
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. row — to paddle
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. mark — a trace
  11. spring — of water
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — in sport
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. spring — the season
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. cold — not warm
  20. date — the fruit
  21. mark — a grade
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. cold — an illness

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