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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: face · cell · swing · net · stem · pop · bulb · nail

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. pop — music
  4. bulb — for light
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. face — to confront
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. net — for catching
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. face — to point toward
  11. net — in sport
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — a phone
  15. pop — soda
  16. bulb — for light
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. swing — in golf
  19. stem — to come from
  20. pop — to visit
  21. swing — music
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. swing — to play on
  24. face — part of the head

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