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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. spell — a short time
  6. net — after costs
  7. date — the fruit
  8. degree — from a university
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — a box
  12. bank — for money
  13. net — in sport
  14. degree — an amount
  15. spell — letters
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. bank — for money
  18. bank — of a river
  19. roll — a list
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. degree — temperature
  22. spell — magic
  23. roll — a cake
  24. chest — of your body

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