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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. object — a thing
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — a grade
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. object — an aim
  13. cell — a phone
  14. fork — in a road
  15. club — a group
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. object — to protest
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. sharp — clever
  21. club — for dancing
  22. net — for catching
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. cell — in biology

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