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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. charge — in control
  4. prune — to trim
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. rush — hurry
  7. current — of water
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. row — to paddle
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. pit — in a race
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. row — a line
  15. pit — a hole
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. charge — a price
  19. rash — a series
  20. current — happening now
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. current — electric
  24. charge — electricity

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