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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. net — in sport
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. charge — in control
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. charge — electricity
  11. net — after costs
  12. rush — hurry
  13. field — a subject
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. charge — a price
  16. net — for catching
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. field — for sport
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. field — farmland
  22. dip — to sink
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. rush — to hurry

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