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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. key — the most important part
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bound — certain
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. firm — a company
  8. face — to confront
  9. firm — steady
  10. face — part of the head
  11. net — for catching
  12. firm — decided
  13. key — for a lock
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. key — in music
  17. bound — tied together
  18. cap — a hat
  19. net — in sport
  20. cap — of ice
  21. shower — to wash
  22. cap — a lid
  23. face — to point toward
  24. shower — rain

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