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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · march · spell · wind · leaves · arm · mouse · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. net — in sport
  10. land — a country
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. spell — letters
  17. wind — moving air
  18. net — for catching
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. spell — a short time
  21. spell — magic
  22. march — the month
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — ground

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