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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. bank — for money
  3. bat — the animal
  4. net — for catching
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. perch — the fish
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — to play on
  10. land — ground
  11. bank — of a river
  12. current — happening now
  13. swing — music
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — after costs
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. land — a country
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. land — to come down
  21. bank — for money
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. sharp — clever
  24. current — electric

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