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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 120 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 was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. key — the most important part
  4. hand — in cards
  5. key — in music
  6. staff — employees
  7. present — the time now
  8. can — a tin
  9. net — for catching
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. staff — a stick
  12. present — there
  13. hand — help
  14. chest — of your body
  15. net — in sport
  16. present — a gift
  17. chest — a box
  18. key — for a lock
  19. can — a tin
  20. cell — in biology
  21. chest — of your body
  22. cell — a phone
  23. staff — employees
  24. can — to be able to

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