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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. current — happening now
  5. sharp — clever
  6. scale — size or range
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. current — electric
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. cell — in biology
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. scale — in music
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. net — for catching
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. net — in sport
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. net — after costs

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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