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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. net — in sport
  3. craft — boats
  4. fine — all right
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. chest — a box
  7. bound — certain
  8. craft — a skill
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bound — obliged
  11. net — for catching
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. chest — of your body
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. fine — high quality
  18. bound — tied together
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. net — after costs
  22. sharp — clever
  23. stand — to bear
  24. craft — a handicraft

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