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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. net — after costs
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. pit — in a race
  5. cell — in biology
  6. land — ground
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. last — finally
  9. pit — a hole
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. net — in sport
  12. cell — a phone
  13. land — a country
  14. net — for catching
  15. mug — a face
  16. mug — to rob
  17. land — to come down
  18. prune — to trim
  19. firm — decided
  20. last — to go on
  21. firm — a company
  22. mug — a cup
  23. last — final
  24. prune — to trim

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