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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. shower — rain
  3. wind — moving air
  4. current — happening now
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. chip — to eat
  7. can — a tin
  8. can — to be able to
  9. can — a tin
  10. shower — to wash
  11. wake — a trail
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. current — of water
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. chip — for betting
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. ball — a dance
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. ball — a great time
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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