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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. roll — a list
  3. current — happening now
  4. rash — a series
  5. rash — hasty
  6. land — ground
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. bat — the animal
  9. land — to come down
  10. roll — a cake
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. last — final
  13. current — of water
  14. season — in sport
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. craft — a skill
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. land — a country
  21. season — of the year
  22. last — to go on
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. last — finally

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