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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. net — after costs
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. net — for catching
  5. date — the fruit
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. spring — the season
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. spring — a coil
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. spring — of water
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. bark — to shout
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. toast — bread
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. net — in sport
  22. wake — a trail
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. trunk — of a car

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