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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 116 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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. land — a country
  3. net — for catching
  4. mate — a friend
  5. scale — in music
  6. mate — a partner
  7. net — after costs
  8. rash — hasty
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. march — the month
  11. can — to be able to
  12. can — a tin
  13. prune — to trim
  14. land — to come down
  15. scale — size or range
  16. net — in sport
  17. prune — to trim
  18. rash — a series
  19. can — a tin
  20. mate — to breed
  21. land — ground
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. march — the month
  24. march — music

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