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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. mate — to breed
  6. squash — the sport
  7. wound — an injury
  8. current — happening now
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. squash — to crush
  12. clip — a video
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. net — for catching
  17. clip — to cut
  18. mate — a partner
  19. current — of water
  20. clip — for paper
  21. mate — a friend
  22. net — in sport
  23. kick — in football
  24. net — after costs

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