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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. drill — army training
  3. club — a group
  4. saw — the tool
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. ground — crushed
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. drill — a practice
  9. kid — child
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. drill — the tool
  12. club — for dancing
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. saw — the tool
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. current — of water
  19. club — for golf
  20. current — happening now
  21. ground — a position
  22. kid — to tease
  23. stem — to come from
  24. ground — the earth

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