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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against 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. bat — for baseball
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. net — for catching
  4. scale — size or range
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — in sport
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. club — for dancing
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. scale — in music
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. club — for golf
  15. current — happening now
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. bat — the animal
  20. shower — rain
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. current — electric
  23. current — of water
  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