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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. rest — what's left
  3. net — for catching
  4. net — after costs
  5. current — of water
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. bass — the fish
  8. spring — of water
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bass — low music
  11. rest — a break
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. current — electric
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. scale — in music
  17. scale — size or range
  18. current — happening now
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. net — in sport
  23. rest — what's left
  24. spring — a coil

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