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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 usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. current — happening now
  3. current — electric
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. rash — hasty
  6. current — of water
  7. kid — to tease
  8. swing — music
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. band — a ring
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. swing — to play on
  14. game — wild animals
  15. band — a music group
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. swing — in golf
  18. chair — a leader
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. fork — in a road
  22. rash — a series
  23. kid — child
  24. game — a match

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