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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. perch — the fish
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. last — final
  5. cell — in biology
  6. board — a committee
  7. deal — to handle
  8. last — to go on
  9. cell — a phone
  10. file — a document
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. current — electric
  15. current — of water
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. board — to get on
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. file — a line of people
  20. current — happening now
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. last — finally
  24. safe — out of danger

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