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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. scale — size or range
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. net — in sport
  5. scale — in music
  6. staff — employees
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — a line
  9. race — a contest
  10. press — a publisher
  11. press — newspapers
  12. press — to push
  13. race — the arms race
  14. staff — employees
  15. net — for catching
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. row — to paddle
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. net — after costs
  21. cold — not warm
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. race — humankind

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