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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. current — electric
  3. key — for a lock
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. key — the most important part
  6. cold — an illness
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. band — a music group
  9. lean — thin
  10. season — in sport
  11. key — in music
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. current — happening now
  14. bore — to tire
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. lean — to bend
  18. bore — to drill
  19. band — a ring
  20. stand — to bear
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. cold — not warm
  23. season — of the year
  24. season — to add flavour

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