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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pop — music
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. plane — a tool
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. cold — an illness
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. cold — not warm
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. current — happening now
  15. current — electric
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. chip — to eat
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. current — of water
  23. pop — soda
  24. chip — for betting

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