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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. kick — in football
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. branch — a division
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. net — in sport
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — a position
  14. net — for catching
  15. rush — hurry
  16. ground — the earth
  17. net — after costs
  18. scale — in music
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. content — the amount
  23. scale — size or range
  24. content — happy

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