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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. season — in sport
  3. pop — music
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. net — for catching
  6. roll — a cake
  7. bore — to tire
  8. pop — to visit
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. season — of the year
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. roll — a list
  13. pop — soda
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. bore — to drill
  16. net — in sport
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pass — a permit
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cell — in biology

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