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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. spell — magic
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. field — farmland
  5. spell — letters
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. spell — a short time
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. current — happening now
  10. current — electric
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. fine — all right
  14. content — the amount
  15. field — for sport
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — after costs
  19. fine — high quality
  20. field — a subject
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. content — happy
  24. content — videos and posts

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