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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. net — after costs
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. net — for catching
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. clip — to cut
  7. pop — soda
  8. deal — to handle
  9. pop — music
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. clip — a video
  12. object — a thing
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. pop — to visit
  16. current — of water
  17. object — an aim
  18. clip — for paper
  19. current — electric
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. object — to protest
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. net — in sport

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