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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  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. pop — to visit
  3. game — wild animals
  4. pop — music
  5. face — part of the head
  6. tube — the underground
  7. land — to come down
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. foot — a measure
  10. face — to point toward
  11. tube — a container
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. land — ground
  14. land — a country
  15. face — to confront
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. pop — soda
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. current — electric
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. game — a match
  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