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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. current — of water
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. cold — an illness
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. branch — a division
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. current — electric
  15. saw — the tool
  16. cold — not warm
  17. saw — the tool
  18. patient — a sick person

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