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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 120 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: wake · net · land · prune · rule · bass · lean · pit

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. bass — the fish
  5. pit — in a race
  6. lean — to bend
  7. net — after costs
  8. net — for catching
  9. land — a country
  10. wake — a trail
  11. prune — to trim
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. land — to come down
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. pit — a hole
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. net — in sport
  18. bass — low music
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. lean — thin
  21. rule — a law
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — government
  24. prune — to trim

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