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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. current — happening now
  3. current — electric
  4. current — of water
  5. chest — of your body
  6. face — part of the head
  7. stock — shares
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. roll — a cake
  10. cell — a phone
  11. face — to confront
  12. roll — a list
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cell — in biology
  15. face — to point toward
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. chest — a box
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stock — goods
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. pitch — completely

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