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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. current — electric
  3. kid — child
  4. track — a path
  5. track — a song
  6. hand — in cards
  7. squash — the sport
  8. present — there
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — to tease
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. current — happening now
  13. roll — a list
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. present — the time now
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. dip — to sink
  18. present — a gift
  19. current — of water
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. roll — a cake
  23. squash — to crush
  24. hand — help

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