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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. net — after costs
  3. firm — decided
  4. face — to confront
  5. firm — a company
  6. dip — to sink
  7. cell — a phone
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. firm — steady
  10. march — the month
  11. face — to point toward
  12. march — the month
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. bear — the animal
  15. mate — a partner
  16. net — in sport
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. march — music
  20. mate — a friend
  21. net — for catching
  22. face — part of the head
  23. cell — in biology
  24. bear — the animal

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