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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. band — a ring
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. current — happening now
  6. stock — shares
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bound — tied together
  9. chip — to eat
  10. stock — goods
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. file — a tool
  14. band — a music group
  15. file — a line of people
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. file — a document
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. current — electric
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. current — of water
  22. chip — for betting
  23. bound — certain
  24. chip — in a computer

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