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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. stock — goods
  3. lean — thin
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. row — a line
  7. chest — of your body
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. stock — shares
  10. current — happening now
  11. current — of water
  12. lean — to bend
  13. row — to paddle
  14. chest — a box
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. capital — money
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. capital — a city
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. chest — of your body

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