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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 124 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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. current — electric
  5. pit — a hole
  6. current — of water
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. bore — to drill
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pit — in a race
  11. last — final
  12. saw — the tool
  13. last — to go on
  14. saw — the tool
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. bore — to tire
  18. scale — size or range
  19. last — finally
  20. scale — in music
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. wake — a trail

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