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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. rush — hurry
  4. field — farmland
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. drill — army training
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. bat — the animal
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. current — of water
  13. field — for sport
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. drill — a practice
  18. field — a subject
  19. current — happening now
  20. sharp — clever
  21. chip — for betting
  22. drill — the tool
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. chip — to eat

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