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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: hand · stand · present · temple · net · firm · date · trunk

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — in sport
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. present — there
  6. date — the fruit
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. firm — a company
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. hand — help
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — the time now
  16. firm — steady
  17. firm — decided
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. net — for catching
  23. stand — to bear
  24. hand — in cards

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