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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. current — of water
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. rule — government
  5. race — a contest
  6. bass — low music
  7. field — a subject
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. pop — to visit
  10. field — farmland
  11. bass — the fish
  12. rule — a law
  13. current — electric
  14. pop — music
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pop — soda
  20. race — the arms race
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. race — humankind
  23. field — for sport
  24. pound — a weight

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