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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. branch — a division
  4. craft — a skill
  5. cell — a phone
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. craft — boats
  10. net — in sport
  11. swing — to play on
  12. net — for catching
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. swing — music
  16. can — a tin
  17. wake — a trail
  18. swing — in golf
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. cell — in biology
  21. ball — a dance
  22. can — to be able to
  23. ball — a great time
  24. can — a tin

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