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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: fine · leaves · band · tear · net · land · dip · prune

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. land — ground
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. tear — to rip
  5. fine — high quality
  6. tear — from crying
  7. net — in sport
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. net — after costs
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. net — for catching
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. land — to come down
  14. fine — all right
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. tear — from crying
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. band — a ring
  19. prune — to trim
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. band — a music group
  22. prune — to trim
  23. dip — to sink
  24. land — a country

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