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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · fall · cell · arm · mark · safe · net · content

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. net — in sport
  6. fall — the season
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. net — after costs
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in biology
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — temperature
  15. content — happy
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. net — for catching
  19. fall — to drop
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. mark — a trace
  22. fall — to drop
  23. degree — an amount
  24. content — the amount

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