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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. net — for catching
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — in music
  8. mine — for digging
  9. game — a match
  10. chip — to eat
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. chip — for betting
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. game — wild animals
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — after costs

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