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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: squash · fan · bass · hand · current · fall · chip · net

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. net — after costs
  3. current — happening now
  4. squash — to crush
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. current — electric
  7. chip — for betting
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. squash — the sport
  10. chip — to eat
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. net — for catching
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. hand — help
  19. bass — low music
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bass — the fish
  22. hand — in cards
  23. net — in sport
  24. fall — the season

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