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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. roll — a list
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. net — for catching
  6. net — after costs
  7. present — a gift
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. wake — a trail
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. roll — a cake
  14. current — of water
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. present — the time now
  18. net — in sport
  19. current — electric
  20. chair — a leader
  21. current — happening now
  22. present — there
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. date — the fruit

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