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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. current — electric
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. land — a country
  9. land — to come down
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. bound — tied together
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. current — of water
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. land — ground
  17. kid — to tease
  18. game — a match
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. bound — certain
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. current — happening now
  24. bound — obliged

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