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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  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. fan — to cool the air
  2. lean — thin
  3. current — electric
  4. lean — to bend
  5. key — for a lock
  6. chip — for betting
  7. key — the most important part
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. key — in music
  10. current — of water
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — to cut
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. current — happening now
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. chip — to eat
  23. wind — to turn a key
  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