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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. net — after costs
  4. roll — a list
  5. chip — to eat
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. race — a contest
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. roll — a cake
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. net — for catching
  15. race — the arms race
  16. chip — for betting
  17. race — humankind
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. net — in sport
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. date — the fruit

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