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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 has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. file — a document
  5. net — for catching
  6. net — in sport
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fall — the season
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. file — a tool
  11. mug — a cup
  12. cold — an illness
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. file — a line of people
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. mug — to rob
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. cold — not warm
  22. fall — to drop
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. mug — a face

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