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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. current — happening now
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. net — after costs
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. court — of law
  10. root — of a plant
  11. court — for sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. root — the cause
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bore — to tire
  16. last — finally
  17. bore — to drill
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. current — of water
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. court — of a king
  23. net — in sport
  24. root — of a word

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