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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 120 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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. drill — army training
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. mark — a grade
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. race — the arms race
  8. mark — a trace
  9. wax — to grow
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — the tool
  12. prune — to trim
  13. chair — a leader
  14. prune — to trim
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. kick — in football
  17. race — a contest
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — for catching
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. race — humankind

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