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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 116 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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. ground — the earth
  3. shower — rain
  4. drill — a practice
  5. ground — crushed
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. stand — to bear
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. land — a country
  11. ground — a position
  12. current — happening now
  13. current — of water
  14. file — a document
  15. drill — army training
  16. drill — the tool
  17. file — a line of people
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. season — of the year
  20. land — ground
  21. file — a tool
  22. season — in sport
  23. land — to come down
  24. shower — to wash

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