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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. net — for catching
  3. charge — electricity
  4. net — in sport
  5. file — a document
  6. current — electric
  7. file — a line of people
  8. current — of water
  9. current — happening now
  10. kid — child
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. charge — in control
  13. charge — a price
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. bass — low music
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. file — a tool
  22. bass — the fish
  23. net — after costs
  24. chair — a leader

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