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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. current — electric
  4. roll — a cake
  5. prune — to trim
  6. staff — employees
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. roll — a list
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. prune — to trim
  15. current — of water
  16. current — happening now
  17. date — the fruit
  18. staff — employees
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. staff — a stick

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