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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. net — after costs
  3. club — for golf
  4. scale — size or range
  5. club — for dancing
  6. wind — moving air
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — help
  11. current — electric
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. current — of water
  16. current — happening now
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. bore — to drill
  19. net — for catching
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bore — to tire
  23. net — in sport
  24. club — a group

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