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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 116 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: safe · club · rest · ruler · cell · net · wound · ground

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — for dancing
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. rest — a break
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. ground — a position
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cell — a phone
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. club — a group
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rest — what's left
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. wound — an injury
  20. net — in sport
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. net — after costs
  24. cell — in biology

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