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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. chip — for betting
  4. wind — moving air
  5. current — electric
  6. current — of water
  7. bound — certain
  8. current — happening now
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. bound — tied together
  11. spell — magic
  12. spell — a short time
  13. hand — help
  14. spell — letters
  15. kid — to tease
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bound — obliged
  22. chip — to eat
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. kid — child

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