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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — clever
  3. current — happening now
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. bass — the fish
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. file — a tool
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. current — of water
  13. current — electric
  14. file — a document
  15. bass — low music
  16. cold — not warm
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. file — a line of people
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. cold — an illness
  22. fine — all right
  23. fine — high quality
  24. fine — a penalty

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