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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. net — for catching
  7. mark — a grade
  8. club — for golf
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. club — a group
  12. fine — all right
  13. club — for dancing
  14. cold — an illness
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. fine — high quality
  18. net — after costs
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cell — a phone
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. cold — not warm
  24. coach — a trainer

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