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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. track — a path
  3. court — for sport
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. court — of law
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. track — a song
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. track — to keep track
  14. row — a line
  15. stock — shares
  16. current — of water
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. stock — goods
  19. court — of a king
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. row — to paddle
  23. current — happening now
  24. hide — to keep secret

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