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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: lie · net · current · field · content · mate · wake · swing

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. net — for catching
  4. content — happy
  5. swing — music
  6. current — of water
  7. net — in sport
  8. current — happening now
  9. swing — to play on
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. net — after costs
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. current — electric
  15. mate — to breed
  16. field — a subject
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. field — for sport
  19. wake — a trail
  20. mate — a partner
  21. lie — to recline
  22. field — farmland
  23. content — the amount
  24. swing — in golf

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