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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. plane — a tool
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. fine — all right
  6. current — happening now
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. march — the month
  9. mark — a trace
  10. march — music
  11. court — of law
  12. court — for sport
  13. current — electric
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. fine — high quality
  16. cold — an illness
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. court — of a king
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. cold — not warm
  22. current — of water
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. march — the month

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