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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bound — obliged
  4. hand — help
  5. bark — to shout
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bound — tied together
  13. spell — a short time
  14. bound — certain
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. current — happening now
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. current — of water
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. wake — a trail
  21. spell — letters
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. wound — an injury
  24. spell — magic

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