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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. current — happening now
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. capital — money
  10. current — electric
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. capital — a city
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. capital — a big letter

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