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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — a tin
  4. fork — in a road
  5. cold — an illness
  6. current — electric
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. squash — the sport
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. cold — not warm
  11. shower — rain
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. current — happening now
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. current — of water
  20. shower — to wash
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. squash — to crush
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. snap — to click

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