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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 120 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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — a stick
  4. current — happening now
  5. march — music
  6. staff — employees
  7. current — electric
  8. hand — in cards
  9. hand — help
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. rash — hasty
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. current — of water
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. wound — an injury
  20. tube — the underground
  21. wound — an injury
  22. tube — a container
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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