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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 124 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — child
  3. wound — an injury
  4. current — electric
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. last — finally
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. bear — the animal
  10. last — to go on
  11. cap — of ice
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stand — to bear
  16. bear — the animal
  17. current — of water
  18. cap — a lid
  19. current — happening now
  20. cap — a hat
  21. branch — a division
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. last — final
  24. stand — for spectators

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