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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: march · kick · scale · safe · net · racket · arm · deal

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — for catching
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. kick — in football
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. march — music
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. deal — to handle
  19. march — the month
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. scale — in music
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. march — the month
  24. scale — size or range

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