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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 120 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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. can — to be able to
  3. saw — the tool
  4. prune — to trim
  5. can — a tin
  6. can — a tin
  7. bat — the animal
  8. stand — to bear
  9. saw — the tool
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. current — happening now
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. current — of water
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. file — a tool
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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