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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 120 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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. season — of the year
  3. current — of water
  4. bound — tied together
  5. land — ground
  6. tear — from crying
  7. season — in sport
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. land — a country
  10. tear — from crying
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. current — happening now
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bound — certain
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. current — electric
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. land — to come down
  24. tear — to rip

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