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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. current — happening now
  3. net — in sport
  4. rash — a series
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. rash — hasty
  7. net — for catching
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. sharp — clever
  10. current — of water
  11. perch — the fish
  12. current — electric
  13. ground — a position
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — the earth
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. sharp — with an edge

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