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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. shower — to wash
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. shower — rain
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. current — of water
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. dip — to sink
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. current — electric
  13. file — a tool
  14. cap — a lid
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. file — a line of people
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. file — a document
  19. pound — a weight
  20. stem — to come from
  21. cap — a hat
  22. cap — of ice
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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