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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. rash — hasty
  3. net — in sport
  4. cell — a phone
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. squash — to crush
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. bound — obliged
  12. squash — the sport
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. net — after costs
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bat — the animal
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. cell — in biology
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. toast — bread
  24. bound — certain

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