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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: march · season · pound · hide · mate · land · chip · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. net — for catching
  4. chip — to eat
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. season — of the year
  7. march — music
  8. land — a country
  9. season — in sport
  10. chip — for betting
  11. mate — to breed
  12. march — the month
  13. mate — a friend
  14. march — the month
  15. mate — a partner
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — ground
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. net — in sport
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. pound — a weight

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