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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. current — of water
  3. season — of the year
  4. board — to get on
  5. file — a line of people
  6. root — the cause
  7. root — of a word
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. file — a document
  11. root — of a plant
  12. current — electric
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. season — in sport
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. march — the month
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. current — happening now
  22. board — a committee
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. file — a tool

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