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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. hand — help
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. bark — to shout
  8. pop — music
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. pop — soda
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. hand — in cards
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. pop — to visit
  16. current — electric
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. current — happening now
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. hand — part of the body

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