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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. pound — a weight
  3. current — happening now
  4. game — a match
  5. mug — a face
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. stem — to come from
  8. current — of water
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. season — in sport
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. season — of the year
  19. mug — a cup
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. current — electric
  22. game — wild animals
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a document

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