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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 has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. net — after costs
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. ball — a dance
  5. net — in sport
  6. net — for catching
  7. spell — magic
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. season — in sport
  11. fall — to drop
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. ball — a great time
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. spell — letters
  17. file — a document
  18. season — of the year
  19. fall — to drop
  20. spell — a short time
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. file — a tool
  23. file — a line of people
  24. fall — the season

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