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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. file — a document
  3. file — a line of people
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. field — farmland
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. bat — the animal
  8. perch — the fish
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. row — to paddle
  11. field — a subject
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. current — electric
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. field — for sport
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. row — a line
  22. file — a tool
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. current — happening now

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