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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. current — electric
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. craft — a skill
  6. charge — a price
  7. object — to protest
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. object — a thing
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. charge — electricity
  12. object — an aim
  13. clip — to cut
  14. current — happening now
  15. craft — boats
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. current — of water
  18. bat — the animal
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. charge — in control
  22. clip — for paper
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. clip — a video

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