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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — for catching
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. fall — the season
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. file — a tool
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. fall — to drop
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. file — a document
  14. current — of water
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. current — happening now
  17. net — after costs
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. current — electric
  22. file — a line of people
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bark — to shout

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