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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. net — after costs
  3. mark — a grade
  4. pound — a weight
  5. sharp — clever
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. current — of water
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. bat — the animal
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pit — in a race
  15. pit — a hole
  16. current — happening now
  17. net — in sport
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. net — for catching
  21. mark — a trace
  22. current — electric
  23. game — a match
  24. game — wild animals

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