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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. current — electric
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. current — of water
  6. content — the amount
  7. band — a ring
  8. charge — a price
  9. charge — electricity
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. fork — in a road
  12. net — in sport
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. current — happening now
  16. charge — in control
  17. net — for catching
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. mark — a trace
  20. content — happy
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mark — a grade
  24. net — after costs

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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