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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 116 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. file — a tool
  3. current — of water
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. track — to keep track
  6. current — electric
  7. ball — a dance
  8. shower — rain
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. lie — to recline
  11. track — a path
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. ball — a great time
  14. file — a document
  15. current — happening now
  16. file — a line of people
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — a meteor shower

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