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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. shower — rain
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. current — electric
  5. cold — not warm
  6. suit — in cards
  7. can — a tin
  8. can — to be able to
  9. shower — to wash
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. suit — clothes
  13. can — a tin
  14. cold — an illness
  15. current — happening now
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. suit — to fit
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. date — the fruit
  22. current — of water
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. cold — the Cold War

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