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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. current — electric
  3. pit — in a race
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. chair — a leader
  7. ground — crushed
  8. current — happening now
  9. perch — the fish
  10. rock — music
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. chest — of your body
  15. ground — the earth
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. ground — a position
  18. wake — a trail
  19. rock — a stone
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. pit — a hole
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. current — of water

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