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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. root — of a plant
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wake — a trail
  7. can — to be able to
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. can — a tin
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. capital — a city
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. current — happening now
  14. game — wild animals
  15. current — electric
  16. current — of water
  17. root — of a word
  18. cell — in biology
  19. capital — money
  20. cell — a phone
  21. root — the cause
  22. game — a match
  23. can — a tin
  24. capital — a big letter

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