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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. band — a music group
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cap — a hat
  9. current — electric
  10. cap — of ice
  11. root — of a plant
  12. band — a ring
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. current — of water
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rush — hurry
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. root — of a word
  21. sharp — clever
  22. root — the cause
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. current — happening now

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