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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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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: net · date · pit · bass · foot · firm · hand · prune

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. foot — a measure
  6. pit — a hole
  7. firm — decided
  8. net — after costs
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. firm — steady
  11. bass — low music
  12. net — for catching
  13. prune — to trim
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. bass — the fish
  16. hand — in cards
  17. date — the fruit
  18. hand — help
  19. pit — in a race
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. net — in sport
  22. prune — to trim
  23. firm — a company
  24. date — on the calendar

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