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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · file · pop · rock · spring · game · cold · plane

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. plane — a tool
  3. net — after costs
  4. rock — music
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. pop — soda
  7. file — a tool
  8. cold — an illness
  9. file — a document
  10. spring — the season
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. net — in sport
  15. file — a line of people
  16. pop — music
  17. net — for catching
  18. rock — a stone
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. cold — not warm
  21. game — wild animals
  22. pop — to visit
  23. game — a match
  24. rock — to move gently

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