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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: firm · mate · march · ground · chair · calf · stem · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. march — the month
  3. net — for catching
  4. firm — a company
  5. firm — steady
  6. mate — a friend
  7. ground — a position
  8. march — music
  9. mate — to breed
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. net — in sport
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. march — the month
  17. firm — decided
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — the earth
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. mate — a partner
  24. stem — to come from

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