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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. net — for catching
  3. net — after costs
  4. rock — music
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. roll — a list
  7. roll — a cake
  8. net — in sport
  9. rock — a stone
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. march — the month
  12. land — a country
  13. object — to protest
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. object — a thing
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. land — ground
  19. object — an aim
  20. fork — in a road
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. land — to come down
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. fork — to eat with

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