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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — a line
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. current — happening now
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. fine — high quality
  8. fine — all right
  9. current — electric
  10. game — a match
  11. mug — a face
  12. mug — a cup
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — clever
  19. mug — to rob
  20. bark — to shout
  21. snap — to click
  22. game — wild animals
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. row — to paddle

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