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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. sharp — clever
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. cold — an illness
  8. last — to go on
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. last — final
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bulb — for light
  16. row — a line
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. last — finally
  20. current — happening now
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. current — electric
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bulb — for light

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