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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. game — wild animals
  5. present — there
  6. current — electric
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. present — the time now
  9. spring — the season
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. chip — to eat
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. current — of water
  16. bat — the animal
  17. chip — for betting
  18. foot — a measure
  19. game — a match
  20. present — a gift
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — of water
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. bat — for baseball

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