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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 120 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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. row — a line
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. current — of water
  7. race — humankind
  8. prune — to trim
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. prune — to trim
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bank — for money
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. current — happening now
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. race — a contest
  18. race — the arms race
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. bank — for money
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. bank — of a river

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