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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 116 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. net — for catching
  3. net — after costs
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. swing — to play on
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. net — in sport
  8. band — a music group
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. pitch — completely
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. swing — music
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. mark — a grade
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. swing — in golf
  23. mark — a trace
  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