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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. current — electric
  6. chair — a leader
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. wind — moving air
  9. rule — government
  10. branch — a division
  11. current — of water
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. wind — moving air
  15. game — a match
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. sharp — clever
  18. kid — to tease
  19. current — happening now
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. kid — child
  22. rule — a law
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. game — wild animals

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