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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 124 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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. current — electric
  3. band — a music group
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lean — thin
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. current — of water
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. band — a ring
  10. court — for sport
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. hand — help
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. court — of a king
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. current — happening now
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. rush — hurry
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — for digging
  24. hand — in cards

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