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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 usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. fall — to drop
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. current — happening now
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bore — to drill
  15. snap — to click
  16. clip — to cut
  17. fork — in a road
  18. bore — to tire
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. current — of water
  21. fall — the season
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. patient — a sick person

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