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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. row — to paddle
  3. row — a line
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. game — wild animals
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. shower — rain
  10. saw — the tool
  11. current — of water
  12. game — a match
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. bear — the animal
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. current — electric
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. shower — to wash
  22. bear — the animal
  23. toast — bread
  24. prune — the fruit

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