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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. prune — to trim
  3. current — electric
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. track — to keep track
  7. current — of water
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. track — a path
  12. prune — to trim
  13. hand — in cards
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. chair — a leader
  19. current — happening now
  20. rest — a break
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. dip — to sink
  23. track — a song
  24. dip — a sauce

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