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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. tear — to rip
  3. file — a tool
  4. wake — a trail
  5. file — a document
  6. tear — from crying
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. spell — a short time
  9. land — to come down
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. land — ground
  12. file — a line of people
  13. rock — a stone
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. spell — magic
  16. spell — letters
  17. current — electric
  18. rock — music
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. current — happening now
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. land — a country
  24. tear — from crying

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