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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. fine — high quality
  4. net — for catching
  5. current — electric
  6. pit — in a race
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — of the year
  9. tube — the underground
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fine — all right
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. bound — certain
  16. tube — a container
  17. bound — obliged
  18. current — of water
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. current — happening now
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. net — in sport
  23. pit — a hole
  24. bound — tied together

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