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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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. land — to come down
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pitch — completely
  7. clip — to cut
  8. pit — in a race
  9. root — of a plant
  10. root — of a word
  11. land — ground
  12. wax — to grow
  13. current — happening now
  14. pit — a hole
  15. current — electric
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. clip — a video
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. clip — for paper
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — a stone
  23. root — the cause
  24. land — a country

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