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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 116 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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. root — the cause
  5. chip — to eat
  6. net — in sport
  7. lean — to bend
  8. root — of a word
  9. shower — rain
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. lean — thin
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. root — of a plant
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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