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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. rest — what's left
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — not warm
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to click
  8. pitch — completely
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. root — of a plant
  11. rest — what's left
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. current — happening now
  14. court — for sport
  15. cold — an illness
  16. court — of law
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. root — the cause
  19. current — of water
  20. court — of a king
  21. pound — a weight
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. root — of a word
  24. current — electric

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