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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. board — to get on
  3. cold — not warm
  4. sharp — clever
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. field — farmland
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. field — a subject
  10. mate — a partner
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. mate — to breed
  14. craft — boats
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. mate — a friend
  17. perch — the fish
  18. current — happening now
  19. cold — an illness
  20. craft — a skill
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. current — of water
  23. board — a committee
  24. field — for sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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