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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. net — after costs
  3. current — electric
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. clip — a video
  6. fall — the season
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. cell — in biology
  10. fall — to drop
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. net — in sport
  14. degree — temperature
  15. degree — an amount
  16. current — happening now
  17. clip — for paper
  18. current — of water
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. stand — to bear
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. clip — to cut
  23. net — for catching
  24. fall — to drop

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