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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. kid — to tease
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. mug — to rob
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. kid — child
  8. mug — a cup
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. sharp — clever
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. current — electric
  13. wake — a trail
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. row — to paddle
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. current — happening now
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. current — of water
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. mug — a face
  23. row — a line
  24. nail — on a finger

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