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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. net — after costs
  3. key — the most important part
  4. present — a gift
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. net — in sport
  7. key — for a lock
  8. game — a match
  9. present — there
  10. tube — the underground
  11. bound — certain
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — obliged
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. present — the time now
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. key — in music
  19. game — wild animals
  20. rest — what's left
  21. net — for catching
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. tube — a container

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