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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 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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. cap — a hat
  4. pass — a permit
  5. wound — an injury
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. cap — a lid
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. wound — an injury
  11. root — the cause
  12. cap — of ice
  13. root — of a plant
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. capital — money
  16. capital — a city
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. root — of a word
  21. present — a gift
  22. net — in sport
  23. present — there
  24. present — the time now

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