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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. present — a gift
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. rush — hurry
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. hand — in cards
  7. present — there
  8. wound — an injury
  9. current — happening now
  10. present — the time now
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hand — help
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. current — electric
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. rush — a thrill

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