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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — a stick
  3. cold — not warm
  4. row — a line
  5. cold — an illness
  6. current — of water
  7. ground — the earth
  8. track — to keep track
  9. row — to paddle
  10. mark — a trace
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a committee
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. track — a path
  15. current — happening now
  16. track — a song
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. ground — a position
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. mark — a grade
  21. current — electric
  22. ground — crushed
  23. staff — employees
  24. board — a flat piece

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