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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 120 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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. current — happening now
  3. net — after costs
  4. squash — to crush
  5. squash — the sport
  6. field — for sport
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. net — for catching
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. mine — for digging
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. current — of water
  16. field — farmland
  17. current — electric
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. field — a subject
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a line
  24. racket — for tennis

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