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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. drill — the tool
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. drill — army training
  6. net — after costs
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. drill — a practice
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. rash — hasty
  12. clip — for paper
  13. rash — a series
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. clip — a video
  16. current — of water
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. current — electric
  19. net — for catching
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. clip — to cut
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. net — in sport
  24. lash — an eyelash

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