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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. last — final
  3. clip — to cut
  4. race — the arms race
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. race — humankind
  10. race — a contest
  11. fork — in a road
  12. clip — a video
  13. current — of water
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. last — to go on
  16. current — happening now
  17. last — finally
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. rush — hurry
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. clip — for paper

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