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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. current — electric
  3. rush — hurry
  4. court — of law
  5. rule — a law
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rule — government
  8. court — of a king
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. net — for catching
  12. saw — the tool
  13. land — to come down
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. net — in sport
  16. court — for sport
  17. current — of water
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. land — ground
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. net — after costs
  23. current — happening now
  24. land — a country

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