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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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. net — after costs
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. race — the arms race
  8. hand — in cards
  9. hand — help
  10. march — music
  11. net — in sport
  12. wind — moving air
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. bound — certain
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. race — a contest
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bound — tied together
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. race — humankind
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. bound — obliged

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