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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. bulb — for light
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. last — final
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bulb — for light
  15. last — finally
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — for catching
  19. mate — to breed
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. prune — to trim
  22. last — to go on
  23. mate — a friend
  24. pitcher — a jug

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