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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. spring — the season
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. current — electric
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. current — happening now
  9. wound — an injury
  10. tear — from crying
  11. spring — of water
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. wound — an injury
  14. tear — to rip
  15. vault — a safe
  16. current — of water
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. spring — a coil
  19. bass — low music
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. tear — from crying
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. bass — the fish

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