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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. current — electric
  4. rule — government
  5. fork — in a road
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. swing — to play on
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. craft — a skill
  12. net — in sport
  13. swing — in golf
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — for catching
  18. current — of water
  19. current — happening now
  20. rush — hurry
  21. craft — boats
  22. rule — a law
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. swing — music

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