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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 116 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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. present — there
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. current — happening now
  5. bass — the fish
  6. root — of a plant
  7. season — of the year
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. clip — a video
  10. bass — low music
  11. season — in sport
  12. clip — to cut
  13. present — the time now
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. root — of a word
  16. current — electric
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. clip — for paper
  19. mug — to rob
  20. present — a gift
  21. mug — a cup
  22. mug — a face
  23. root — the cause
  24. lie — to recline

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