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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 116 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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. club — for golf
  3. field — for sport
  4. saw — the tool
  5. net — for catching
  6. sharp — clever
  7. field — a subject
  8. club — a group
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. rule — a law
  11. rule — government
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — money
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. net — in sport
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. field — farmland
  21. club — for dancing
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. saw — the tool

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