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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: kick · bore · field · saw · mate · suit · net · prune

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. suit — to fit
  3. saw — the tool
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — farmland
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. bore — to drill
  8. field — a subject
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. kick — in football
  11. mate — a friend
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. suit — in cards
  15. suit — clothes
  16. mate — a partner
  17. net — for catching
  18. saw — the tool
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bore — to tire
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. mate — to breed
  23. prune — to trim
  24. net — in sport

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