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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. firm — a company
  3. club — a group
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. net — in sport
  6. net — for catching
  7. firm — steady
  8. club — for dancing
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. wind — moving air
  11. branch — a division
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. pitch — completely
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. club — for golf
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. firm — decided
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. sharp — clever

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