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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. kid — to tease
  3. rest — what's left
  4. pass — a permit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. current — happening now
  7. rest — a break
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. date — the fruit
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. kid — child
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — to cut
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. bulb — for light
  19. clip — for paper
  20. bulb — for light
  21. rest — what's left
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. current — electric
  24. pass — to succeed

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