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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  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. mouse — for a computer
  2. current — electric
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. root — of a word
  6. cold — not warm
  7. rash — hasty
  8. mate — a friend
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. mate — to breed
  11. cold — an illness
  12. row — a line
  13. ground — a position
  14. row — to paddle
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. root — of a plant
  17. current — of water
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ground — crushed
  20. mate — a partner
  21. rash — a series
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. root — the cause
  24. current — happening now

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