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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into 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. bat — the animal
  2. ball — a dance
  3. ball — a great time
  4. pound — a weight
  5. current — of water
  6. chair — a leader
  7. craft — boats
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. wound — an injury
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. bore — to tire
  13. current — electric
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. wound — an injury
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. craft — a skill
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. ball — a round shape
  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