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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. current — of water
  4. content — happy
  5. shower — to wash
  6. current — happening now
  7. shower — rain
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. file — a document
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — for a lock
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. file — a line of people
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. file — a tool
  20. current — electric
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  24. content — the amount

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