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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. branch — a division
  3. current — of water
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. current — electric
  7. row — a line
  8. row — to paddle
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. clip — for paper
  11. clip — to cut
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. board — to get on
  14. squash — the sport
  15. current — happening now
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. clip — a video
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. squash — to crush
  22. board — a committee
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. ruler — for measuring

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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