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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. current — happening now
  3. mug — to rob
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. march — the month
  6. field — for sport
  7. march — the month
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mug — a face
  10. march — music
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. can — to be able to
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. chair — a leader
  17. can — a tin
  18. rush — hurry
  19. field — farmland
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. field — a subject
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. current — of water
  24. can — a tin

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