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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. face — to confront
  3. ball — a great time
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. saw — the tool
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. prune — to trim
  12. band — a ring
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. band — a music group
  15. current — electric
  16. ball — a dance
  17. face — to point toward
  18. current — of water
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. face — part of the head
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bat — the animal

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