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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 116 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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. kid — child
  3. key — for a lock
  4. bass — low music
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. key — the most important part
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. wake — a trail
  10. key — in music
  11. kid — to tease
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. bass — the fish
  14. wound — an injury
  15. current — electric
  16. current — of water
  17. club — a group
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. club — for golf
  24. club — for dancing

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