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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. charge — a price
  3. mug — a face
  4. chair — a leader
  5. wound — an injury
  6. charge — electricity
  7. deal — to handle
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. tear — from crying
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. content — happy
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. mug — to rob
  16. current — electric
  17. current — happening now
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. tear — to rip
  20. content — the amount
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wound — an injury
  23. charge — in control
  24. mug — a cup

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