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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. band — a ring
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. net — after costs
  5. wound — an injury
  6. degree — an amount
  7. root — the cause
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. root — of a word
  11. net — in sport
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. degree — from a university
  14. band — a music group
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. root — of a plant
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wound — an injury
  19. plane — a tool
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. net — for catching
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — for light
  24. safe — a strongbox

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