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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. chip — to eat
  4. prune — to trim
  5. court — for sport
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. bass — low music
  9. bass — the fish
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. current — of water
  13. wound — an injury
  14. chip — for betting
  15. court — of law
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. plane — a tool
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. current — electric
  22. court — of a king
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. current — happening now

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