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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. mate — a friend
  3. chair — a leader
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. current — happening now
  11. wind — moving air
  12. mate — a partner
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. kid — to tease
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. mate — to breed
  20. stock — goods
  21. stock — shares
  22. current — electric
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kid — child

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