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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. net — in sport
  3. pound — a weight
  4. sharp — clever
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. cell — in biology
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. ground — the earth
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. net — after costs
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. ground — a position
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. mine — for digging
  21. lie — to recline
  22. ground — crushed
  23. branch — a division
  24. net — for catching

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