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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. current — electric
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. band — a ring
  7. rock — a stone
  8. track — a song
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. current — of water
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bark — to shout
  13. fall — to drop
  14. track — to keep track
  15. track — a path
  16. ground — crushed
  17. band — a music group
  18. ground — the earth
  19. fall — the season
  20. fall — to drop
  21. rock — music
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. ground — a position

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