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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: prune · bat · stand · pound · foot · nail · net · game

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. prune — to trim
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — after costs
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. bat — the animal
  12. foot — a measure
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. pound — a weight
  19. net — for catching
  20. prune — to trim
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. bat — in an idiom

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