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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. staff — employees
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. game — wild animals
  6. scale — size or range
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — a stick
  10. scale — in music
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — a tin
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — for catching
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. wake — a trail
  19. can — to be able to
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. game — a match

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