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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. current — happening now
  11. rash — hasty
  12. rock — music
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. current — electric
  15. wake — a trail
  16. game — a match
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rock — a stone
  20. pitch — completely
  21. rash — a series
  22. game — wild animals
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. rock — to move gently

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