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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. root — of a plant
  3. spring — of water
  4. file — a line of people
  5. current — of water
  6. chest — a box
  7. file — a document
  8. kid — child
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — a coil
  11. chest — of your body
  12. drill — army training
  13. file — a tool
  14. drill — the tool
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. current — electric
  19. root — the cause
  20. root — of a word
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. chest — of your body
  23. pass — a permit
  24. drill — a practice

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