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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. club — a group
  3. net — after costs
  4. bound — obliged
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. net — for catching
  9. bound — certain
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. club — for dancing
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pass — a permit
  14. sharp — clever
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. cell — in biology
  17. net — in sport
  18. bound — tied together
  19. club — for golf
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. sharp — exactly

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