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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: file · land · date · hide · net · toast · mark · pop

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. date — the fruit
  3. pop — to visit
  4. land — to come down
  5. net — for catching
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. mark — a trace
  9. pop — music
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. net — in sport
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. file — a tool
  15. land — a country
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. land — ground
  19. file — a document
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. file — a line of people
  23. pop — soda
  24. hide — to keep secret

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