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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. net — after costs
  3. race — humankind
  4. spell — a short time
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. branch — a division
  7. prune — to trim
  8. track — a path
  9. track — to keep track
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. spell — letters
  13. race — the arms race
  14. date — the fruit
  15. net — for catching
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. net — in sport
  18. spell — magic
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. sharp — clever
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. track — a song
  24. prune — to trim

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