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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. net — after costs
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. cold — not warm
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — there
  8. cold — an illness
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. branch — a division
  12. perch — the fish
  13. current — happening now
  14. dip — to sink
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. net — for catching
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. current — electric
  20. current — of water
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. present — a gift
  24. net — in sport

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