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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. current — electric
  3. scale — size or range
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. field — for sport
  6. cap — of ice
  7. current — happening now
  8. spring — of water
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. can — to be able to
  11. field — farmland
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spell — letters
  14. field — a subject
  15. can — a tin
  16. spell — magic
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cap — a lid
  19. can — a tin
  20. scale — in music
  21. spring — the season
  22. current — of water
  23. spell — a short time
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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