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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. current — happening now
  3. current — electric
  4. rule — government
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. rule — a law
  7. field — a subject
  8. current — of water
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. last — final
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. last — finally
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. field — for sport
  18. ball — a great time
  19. last — to go on
  20. ball — a dance
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. field — farmland
  24. ball — a round shape

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