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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. object — an aim
  4. clip — for paper
  5. current — happening now
  6. net — for catching
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. clip — to cut
  9. current — of water
  10. object — to protest
  11. current — electric
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. fork — in a road
  14. net — in sport
  15. chip — to eat
  16. object — a thing
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chip — for betting
  19. net — after costs
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. clip — a video
  23. chair — a leader
  24. fork — to eat with

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