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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. perch — the fish
  5. current — happening now
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. current — electric
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. wind — moving air
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bass — low music
  15. lean — thin
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. current — of water
  18. band — a ring
  19. lean — to bend
  20. land — a country
  21. bass — the fish
  22. band — a music group
  23. land — to come down
  24. jam — in traffic

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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