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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  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. ball — a great time
  2. game — a match
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. net — after costs
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — the fish
  10. race — a contest
  11. game — wild animals
  12. race — humankind
  13. ball — a dance
  14. chest — a box
  15. net — in sport
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chest — of your body
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. race — the arms race
  22. net — for catching
  23. fan — to cool the air
  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