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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. land — ground
  3. rock — a stone
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. cap — a lid
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. land — to come down
  10. prune — to trim
  11. current — of water
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. prune — to trim
  14. rock — music
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. cap — of ice
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. cap — a hat
  20. current — happening now
  21. land — a country
  22. current — electric
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. dip — to sink

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