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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. roll — a cake
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. charge — in control
  6. field — farmland
  7. file — a tool
  8. roll — a list
  9. kid — to tease
  10. file — a line of people
  11. kid — child
  12. rock — a stone
  13. field — a subject
  14. current — happening now
  15. board — to get on
  16. charge — electricity
  17. file — a document
  18. current — of water
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. current — electric
  22. charge — a price
  23. rock — music
  24. board — a committee

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