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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 116 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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. net — for catching
  3. last — final
  4. current — electric
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. last — to go on
  7. current — of water
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bass — low music
  10. net — after costs
  11. band — a music group
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. bass — the fish
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. last — finally
  18. land — to come down
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. net — in sport
  21. land — a country
  22. band — a ring
  23. current — happening now
  24. land — ground

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