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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. fine — all right
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. net — for catching
  6. present — there
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — for paper
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. net — after costs
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. present — the time now
  15. net — in sport
  16. fine — high quality
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — a country
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. land — ground
  21. present — a gift
  22. clip — to cut
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a ring

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