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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. current — electric
  3. current — of water
  4. spell — a short time
  5. court — for sport
  6. spell — letters
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. spell — magic
  9. scale — size or range
  10. current — happening now
  11. bulb — for light
  12. court — of law
  13. court — of a king
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. game — wild animals
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. bulb — for light
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. game — a match
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. row — a line
  23. row — to paddle
  24. scale — in music

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