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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: hand · spell · net · field · cap · current · branch · pitcher

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. field — for sport
  4. cap — of ice
  5. current — of water
  6. field — a subject
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. net — in sport
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. net — for catching
  11. cap — a lid
  12. field — farmland
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. current — electric
  15. spell — a short time
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. cap — a hat
  19. branch — a division
  20. spell — magic
  21. net — after costs
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — in cards
  24. spell — letters

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