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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 was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. last — final
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. mate — a friend
  6. cell — a phone
  7. rule — government
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. cell — in biology
  10. band — a music group
  11. band — a ring
  12. rule — a law
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. mate — to breed
  15. net — for catching
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — finally
  19. board — to get on
  20. mate — a partner
  21. net — in sport
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. board — a committee

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