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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. current — of water
  3. current — electric
  4. bulb — for light
  5. chest — a box
  6. squash — to crush
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chip — to eat
  10. chest — of your body
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — for paper
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bulb — for light
  17. current — happening now
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. prune — to trim
  21. clip — to cut
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. chip — for betting

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