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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. file — a tool
  3. race — a contest
  4. craft — boats
  5. pit — in a race
  6. charge — in control
  7. charge — electricity
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. net — in sport
  10. file — a line of people
  11. wound — an injury
  12. last — finally
  13. net — for catching
  14. pit — a hole
  15. file — a document
  16. wound — an injury
  17. craft — a skill
  18. race — the arms race
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — final
  21. charge — a price
  22. race — humankind
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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