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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 120 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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. net — for catching
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bound — obliged
  6. net — in sport
  7. chest — a box
  8. rock — music
  9. key — for a lock
  10. pop — music
  11. bound — tied together
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bound — certain
  14. mate — to breed
  15. net — after costs
  16. mate — a partner
  17. key — in music
  18. mate — a friend
  19. rock — a stone
  20. key — the most important part
  21. pop — soda
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. pop — to visit

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