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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. current — electric
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. key — the most important part
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. file — a line of people
  7. rush — hurry
  8. land — a country
  9. land — ground
  10. land — to come down
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. key — in music
  14. club — for golf
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. club — for dancing
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a document
  19. net — after costs
  20. key — for a lock
  21. tube — the underground
  22. tube — a container
  23. current — of water
  24. current — happening now

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