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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  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. fine — high quality
  2. fine — all right
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. chip — to eat
  6. hand — help
  7. tear — to rip
  8. hand — in cards
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bass — low music
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. current — electric
  14. can — to be able to
  15. saw — the tool
  16. current — of water
  17. bass — the fish
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — a tin
  20. tear — from crying
  21. saw — the tool
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. current — happening now
  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