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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bass — low music
  4. tube — a container
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. bark — to shout
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. game — a match
  9. current — electric
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. current — happening now
  12. can — a tin
  13. game — wild animals
  14. cell — in biology
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bass — the fish
  17. can — a tin
  18. tube — the underground
  19. can — to be able to
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — not warm
  22. current — of water
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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