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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. That must've been a ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. file — a line of people
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. rush — hurry
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. race — a contest
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. file — a document
  13. current — electric
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — to breed
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. file — a tool
  18. hand — help
  19. race — humankind
  20. current — happening now
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. mate — a friend
  23. race — the arms race
  24. straw — a straw man

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