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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. prune — to trim
  3. track — a path
  4. clip — to cut
  5. clip — a video
  6. track — a song
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. current — happening now
  9. track — to keep track
  10. clip — for paper
  11. land — ground
  12. land — a country
  13. scale — in music
  14. swing — in golf
  15. staff — employees
  16. land — to come down
  17. swing — music
  18. staff — a stick
  19. current — electric
  20. swing — to play on
  21. scale — size or range
  22. prune — to trim
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. staff — employees

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