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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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Word bank
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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: land · lie · bat · rock · net · staff · fall · drill

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. drill — the tool
  5. net — in sport
  6. land — ground
  7. fall — the season
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. lie — to recline
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — employees
  13. rock — a stone
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. land — a country
  16. net — for catching
  17. fall — to drop
  18. rock — music
  19. staff — a stick
  20. bat — the animal
  21. drill — army training
  22. fall — to drop
  23. drill — a practice
  24. land — to come down

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