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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. race — a contest
  3. current — electric
  4. court — of law
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. row — a line
  7. bass — low music
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. squash — the sport
  10. file — a document
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — humankind
  13. file — a tool
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. court — for sport
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. current — happening now
  18. file — a line of people
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. bass — the fish
  21. current — of water
  22. court — of a king
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. squash — to crush

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