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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. pop — soda
  3. wind — moving air
  4. kid — to tease
  5. bound — certain
  6. bore — to tire
  7. pop — to visit
  8. current — electric
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bound — tied together
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. pop — music
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. current — happening now
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. kid — child
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. bound — obliged
  24. chest — a box

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