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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. root — of a plant
  3. net — after costs
  4. wound — an injury
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. clip — to cut
  8. wound — an injury
  9. net — in sport
  10. net — for catching
  11. mark — a grade
  12. mark — a trace
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. march — music
  16. clip — for paper
  17. root — of a word
  18. root — the cause
  19. clip — a video
  20. march — the month
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. march — the month
  24. safe — out of danger

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