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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — to trim
  4. race — humankind
  5. field — farmland
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. board — a committee
  9. row — a line
  10. current — electric
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. board — to get on
  13. current — happening now
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. field — for sport
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. race — a contest
  19. row — to paddle
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. race — the arms race
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. field — a subject

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