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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fall · scale · net · chest · current · suit · tear · saw

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. fall — the season
  3. fall — to drop
  4. suit — clothes
  5. suit — to fit
  6. saw — the tool
  7. fall — to drop
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. net — after costs
  10. suit — in cards
  11. chest — a box
  12. chest — of your body
  13. scale — in music
  14. current — happening now
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. current — of water
  18. tear — to rip
  19. chest — of your body
  20. current — electric
  21. saw — the tool
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. net — in sport
  24. scale — size or range

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