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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: net · deal · firm · march · plane · board · band · prune

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  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. deal — an agreement
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. board — a committee
  5. band — a music group
  6. march — the month
  7. firm — steady
  8. march — music
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — to trim
  11. plane — a tool
  12. march — the month
  13. net — after costs
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. net — in sport
  16. board — to get on
  17. deal — to handle
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. firm — decided
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. band — a ring
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. net — for catching
  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