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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. fall — to drop
  3. last — finally
  4. row — a line
  5. charge — electricity
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. charge — a price
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. row — to paddle
  11. current — happening now
  12. kick — in football
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. current — electric
  16. last — to go on
  17. current — of water
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. fall — to drop
  20. charge — in control
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. fall — the season
  24. bark — to shout

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