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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. current — electric
  4. court — of a king
  5. march — the month
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. march — the month
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. sharp — clever
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. current — happening now
  20. march — music
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. court — of law
  24. court — for sport

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