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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 116 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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. hand — help
  3. fork — in a road
  4. shower — to wash
  5. ground — the earth
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — in cards
  8. charge — a price
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. charge — in control
  11. current — happening now
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. ground — a position
  15. shower — rain
  16. race — the arms race
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. charge — electricity
  19. lie — to recline
  20. ground — crushed
  21. race — a contest
  22. current — of water
  23. race — humankind
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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