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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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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: march · pit · wind · squash · leaves · tear · net · board

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. board — to get on
  6. march — the month
  7. pit — a hole
  8. march — the month
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — from crying
  12. net — in sport
  13. tear — to rip
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — the sport
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. board — a committee
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. squash — to crush
  20. pit — in a race
  21. net — for catching
  22. march — music
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. wind — to turn a key

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