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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 120 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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. tube — a container
  4. rash — a series
  5. chest — of your body
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. fall — to drop
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cell — a phone
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rash — hasty
  13. current — electric
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. snap — to click
  17. cell — in biology
  18. current — happening now
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. fall — to drop
  21. tube — the underground
  22. fall — the season
  23. chest — a box
  24. patient — a sick person

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