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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. current — happening now
  3. date — the fruit
  4. current — of water
  5. cold — an illness
  6. current — electric
  7. file — a line of people
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. rock — a stone
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. file — a document
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. cold — not warm
  17. mug — a cup
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. file — a tool
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. mug — to rob
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. mug — a face

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