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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. drill — a practice
  3. rash — a series
  4. drill — the tool
  5. current — of water
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cell — in biology
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. cell — a phone
  11. scale — size or range
  12. drill — army training
  13. scale — in music
  14. current — electric
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. clip — a video
  18. sharp — clever
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. clip — to cut
  22. rash — hasty
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. rash — on the skin

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