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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 116 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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. current — happening now
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. current — electric
  6. land — to come down
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bulb — for light
  9. land — a country
  10. march — music
  11. current — of water
  12. chip — to eat
  13. drill — a practice
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. chip — for betting
  16. drill — army training
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. drill — the tool
  20. march — the month
  21. bulb — for light
  22. land — ground
  23. march — the month
  24. chip — in a computer

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