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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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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — for catching
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. net — in sport
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. band — a ring
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. rule — a law
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. squash — the sport
  12. lean — to bend
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. fork — in a road
  16. squash — to crush
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. rule — government
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. lean — thin
  21. bark — to shout
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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