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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. suit — to fit
  3. wind — moving air
  4. last — final
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — to cut
  7. suit — clothes
  8. pop — music
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. wind — moving air
  11. suit — in cards
  12. current — electric
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. last — to go on
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. clip — a video
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. current — of water
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — music
  22. pop — to visit
  23. last — finally
  24. current — happening now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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