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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  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. pit — in a race
  2. track — a path
  3. court — of law
  4. file — a tool
  5. track — a song
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — government
  8. file — a document
  9. current — electric
  10. track — to keep track
  11. rule — a law
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. court — of a king
  14. plane — a tool
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. court — for sport
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. pit — a hole
  20. file — a line of people
  21. current — of water
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  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