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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: wind · row · current · fork · roll · bat · safe · net

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. current — electric
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. current — of water
  11. wind — moving air
  12. current — happening now
  13. fork — in a road
  14. row — a line
  15. wind — moving air
  16. roll — a list
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. net — after costs
  19. row — to paddle
  20. net — in sport
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. net — for catching
  24. roll — a cake

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