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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. pit — in a race
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wake — a trail
  9. current — electric
  10. plane — a tool
  11. pit — a hole
  12. rash — hasty
  13. file — a document
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. current — of water
  16. current — happening now
  17. bass — low music
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. rash — a series
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. file — a line of people
  23. file — a tool
  24. wound — an injury

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