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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. file — a tool
  3. march — the month
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — in music
  6. current — electric
  7. lean — thin
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. file — a document
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. current — happening now
  15. key — the most important part
  16. current — of water
  17. march — the month
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. march — music
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. lean — to bend
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. file — a line of people
  24. snap — to click

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