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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. net — after costs
  3. bank — for money
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. dip — to sink
  7. firm — decided
  8. net — for catching
  9. ground — crushed
  10. net — in sport
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bank — of a river
  13. cell — a phone
  14. march — music
  15. bank — for money
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. ground — a position
  18. ground — the earth
  19. stem — to come from
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. firm — steady
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. firm — a company

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