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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: chair · can · mine · plane · present · craft · game · net

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. net — after costs
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. can — a tin
  7. chair — a leader
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. craft — boats
  10. present — the time now
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. plane — a tool
  13. present — there
  14. present — a gift
  15. can — to be able to
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. net — in sport
  21. craft — a skill
  22. net — for catching
  23. can — a tin
  24. game — a match

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