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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 120 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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. net — for catching
  4. wake — a trail
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. current — of water
  7. net — after costs
  8. scale — size or range
  9. current — happening now
  10. bass — the fish
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. fork — in a road
  14. current — electric
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bear — the animal
  18. net — in sport
  19. scale — in music
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bear — the animal
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. bass — low music

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