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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. current — of water
  4. current — electric
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. spring — the season
  7. clip — a video
  8. net — after costs
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. bore — to tire
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bore — to drill
  16. current — happening now
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — for catching
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. clip — to cut
  21. pound — a weight
  22. spring — of water
  23. spring — a coil
  24. pound — for dogs

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