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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. mark — a trace
  5. game — wild animals
  6. craft — a skill
  7. current — electric
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. game — a match
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. current — happening now
  13. mark — a grade
  14. squash — to crush
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rash — hasty
  17. craft — boats
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. rash — a series
  22. perch — the fish
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. craft — a handicraft

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