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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. cell — a phone
  3. ground — a position
  4. prune — to trim
  5. net — after costs
  6. ground — the earth
  7. date — the fruit
  8. object — to protest
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. net — for catching
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. net — in sport
  14. object — a thing
  15. cell — in biology
  16. tube — the underground
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. ground — crushed
  19. prune — to trim
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. object — an aim
  24. cabinet — ministers

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