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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. net — after costs
  3. mark — a trace
  4. net — in sport
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. march — the month
  8. stem — to come from
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. march — music
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. content — the amount
  14. net — for catching
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. content — happy
  19. lean — thin
  20. lean — to bend
  21. pound — a weight
  22. mark — a grade
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. march — the month

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