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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rush — hurry
  3. current — happening now
  4. last — finally
  5. wound — an injury
  6. swing — to play on
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. charge — electricity
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. charge — a price
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bat — the animal
  15. current — of water
  16. current — electric
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — in golf
  21. charge — in control
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. last — final
  24. last — to go on

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