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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — the season
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. rule — government
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. rush — hurry
  10. field — for sport
  11. bass — low music
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — a subject
  14. bass — the fish
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. current — electric
  17. current — of water
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. rule — a law
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. spring — a coil
  24. pitch — completely

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