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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. net — for catching
  4. ground — a position
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. band — a music group
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. perch — the fish
  11. ground — the earth
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. net — after costs
  14. shower — to wash
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. shower — rain
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. band — a ring
  19. rock — a stone
  20. ground — crushed
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. rock — music
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. branch — a division

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