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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: deal · board · mate · saw · capital · land · prune · net

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. land — ground
  5. saw — the tool
  6. mate — a partner
  7. deal — to handle
  8. capital — money
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. land — to come down
  11. capital — a city
  12. mate — to breed
  13. prune — to trim
  14. board — to get on
  15. prune — to trim
  16. net — for catching
  17. mate — a friend
  18. land — a country
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. net — in sport
  21. saw — the tool
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. net — after costs
  24. board — a committee

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