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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. net — for catching
  3. perch — the fish
  4. current — happening now
  5. bat — the animal
  6. net — in sport
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. march — the month
  9. swing — in golf
  10. current — of water
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. swing — music
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. swing — to play on
  15. march — the month
  16. march — music
  17. net — after costs
  18. roll — a cake
  19. hand — help
  20. roll — a list
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. current — electric
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bat — in an idiom

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