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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. current — of water
  3. spring — the season
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — a match
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. chip — to eat
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. fall — to drop
  11. current — electric
  12. fall — the season
  13. current — happening now
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — the tool
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. drill — army training
  18. fall — to drop
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. plane — a tool
  22. spring — a coil
  23. chip — for betting
  24. spring — of water

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