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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 120 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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  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. current — of water
  2. fall — to drop
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. sharp — clever
  7. ground — a position
  8. current — electric
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. stand — to bear
  11. fall — the season
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — the earth
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. rock — music
  18. fall — to drop
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — not warm
  23. rock — a stone
  24. current — happening now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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