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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: present · band · saw · cabinet · land · trunk · net · rock

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. land — a country
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. rock — music
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. net — for catching
  9. band — a ring
  10. net — in sport
  11. present — a gift
  12. present — the time now
  13. land — ground
  14. present — there
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. saw — the tool
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. rock — a stone
  22. land — to come down
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. band — a music group

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