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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. root — the cause
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fall — to drop
  5. root — of a word
  6. fine — all right
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. net — for catching
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. spring — of water
  11. net — in sport
  12. rash — hasty
  13. fall — the season
  14. rash — a series
  15. root — of a plant
  16. spring — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. spring — a coil

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