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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 120 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. current — of water
  5. wind — moving air
  6. tear — from crying
  7. can — a tin
  8. wind — moving air
  9. can — to be able to
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. shower — to wash
  12. tear — from crying
  13. net — in sport
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. net — for catching
  16. current — happening now
  17. shower — rain
  18. tear — to rip
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. can — a tin
  22. current — electric
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wind — to turn a key

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