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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: fan · net · dip · pit · branch · cabinet · fall · last

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. dip — to sink
  3. last — to go on
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — for catching
  6. branch — a division
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fall — to drop
  10. pit — a hole
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. pit — in a race
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. fall — the season
  16. last — final
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. fall — to drop
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. last — finally
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. fan — to cool the air

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