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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: roll · face · ground · cabinet · club · mate · net · march

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. club — for golf
  4. mate — a friend
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. roll — a cake
  8. march — music
  9. face — to confront
  10. net — in sport
  11. ground — crushed
  12. mate — a partner
  13. net — after costs
  14. club — a group
  15. roll — a list
  16. march — the month
  17. ground — a position
  18. net — for catching
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. face — part of the head
  21. mate — to breed
  22. march — the month
  23. ground — the earth
  24. face — to point toward

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