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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. lean — to bend
  3. chip — for betting
  4. swing — music
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. lean — thin
  7. net — for catching
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. current — happening now
  11. tube — a container
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. current — electric
  14. mine — for digging
  15. swing — to play on
  16. swing — in golf
  17. current — of water
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. chip — to eat
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. net — in sport
  24. tube — the underground

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