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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. current — of water
  5. chest — of your body
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. plane — a tool
  8. tube — the underground
  9. mark — a trace
  10. rule — government
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. cold — not warm
  14. rule — a law
  15. current — electric
  16. mark — a grade
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. current — happening now
  20. chest — a box
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. cabinet — ministers

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