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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. last — final
  3. mark — a grade
  4. pop — music
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. net — for catching
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. mark — a trace
  10. last — finally
  11. game — a match
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. pop — to visit
  14. net — after costs
  15. net — in sport
  16. bore — to drill
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. pop — soda
  22. bore — to tire
  23. game — wild animals
  24. last — to go on

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