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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. present — the time now
  3. march — the month
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mine — for digging
  7. chair — a leader
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. current — happening now
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. current — of water
  15. march — music
  16. present — there
  17. bass — the fish
  18. wind — moving air
  19. current — electric
  20. march — the month
  21. rash — a series
  22. bass — low music
  23. present — a gift
  24. mine — belonging to me

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