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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. charge — a price
  4. hand — in cards
  5. present — there
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. present — a gift
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. ground — crushed
  10. charge — in control
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. current — electric
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — the earth
  15. bore — to tire
  16. hand — help
  17. mine — for digging
  18. charge — electricity
  19. current — happening now
  20. current — of water
  21. present — the time now
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bore — to drill

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