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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: mate · trunk · bay · net · face · stick · fine · capital

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. face — to point toward
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. net — in sport
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. capital — money
  7. mate — a friend
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. net — for catching
  11. fine — all right
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. mate — a partner
  14. face — to confront
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — a city
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. mate — to breed
  22. fine — high quality
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. face — part of the head

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