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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. current — electric
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a ring
  6. land — ground
  7. content — the amount
  8. deal — to handle
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. mate — to breed
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. game — a match
  13. land — a country
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. mate — a partner
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. land — to come down
  20. current — of water
  21. content — happy
  22. game — wild animals
  23. current — happening now
  24. deal — a big deal

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