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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. chest — of your body
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. current — electric
  9. chest — of your body
  10. tube — a container
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. current — happening now
  13. squash — the sport
  14. chest — a box
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. hand — help
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. hand — in cards
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. squash — to crush

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