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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. season — of the year
  3. net — after costs
  4. staff — employees
  5. net — in sport
  6. fall — to drop
  7. land — a country
  8. net — for catching
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. cap — a hat
  11. fall — to drop
  12. staff — a stick
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. cap — a lid
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. land — ground
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pitch — completely
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. fall — the season
  22. staff — employees
  23. land — to come down
  24. season — in sport

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