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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. wake — a trail
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. net — in sport
  6. scale — size or range
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. spring — of water
  10. tube — a container
  11. scale — in music
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. row — to paddle
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. net — after costs
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. spring — a coil
  20. row — a line
  21. snap — to click
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. spring — the season
  24. tube — the underground

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