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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 · bass · field · rash · current · net · perch · wake

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. current — of water
  4. bass — low music
  5. fall — to drop
  6. net — for catching
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. perch — the fish
  11. net — after costs
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. net — in sport
  14. wake — a trail
  15. fall — to drop
  16. rash — hasty
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. current — electric
  20. rash — a series
  21. field — farmland
  22. field — a subject
  23. current — happening now
  24. field — for sport

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