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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 116 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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. cold — not warm
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. rush — hurry
  14. stem — to come from
  15. pitch — completely
  16. cell — in biology
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. current — of water
  19. current — electric
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. wake — a trail
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — the Cold War

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