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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — a line
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. kid — to tease
  7. drill — army training
  8. current — electric
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. chair — a leader
  12. current — of water
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. kid — child
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. drill — the tool
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. foot — a measure
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the sport
  24. drill — a practice

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