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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. clip — a video
  3. land — a country
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. clip — for paper
  6. rash — a series
  7. rash — hasty
  8. clip — to cut
  9. march — the month
  10. vault — a safe
  11. land — ground
  12. land — to come down
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. current — of water
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. band — a music group
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. march — the month
  22. current — electric
  23. band — a ring
  24. march — music

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