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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. current — electric
  3. court — of a king
  4. stem — to come from
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. kick — in football
  7. pop — to visit
  8. court — of law
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. court — for sport
  11. pop — music
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. board — a committee
  14. pound — a weight
  15. current — of water
  16. shower — to wash
  17. board — to get on
  18. current — happening now
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. pop — soda

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