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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. row — to paddle
  3. chair — a leader
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. key — the most important part
  6. file — a document
  7. current — happening now
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. current — of water
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. row — a line
  12. field — for sport
  13. key — for a lock
  14. current — electric
  15. key — in music
  16. field — farmland
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. file — a line of people
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. wake — a trail
  23. field — a subject
  24. file — a tool

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