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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 wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. tear — from crying
  4. spring — a coil
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. tear — from crying
  7. cue — a hint
  8. spring — the season
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. march — the month
  11. current — of water
  12. cue — for pool
  13. pass — a permit
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. current — electric
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. tear — to rip
  18. field — a subject
  19. march — the month
  20. march — music
  21. field — farmland
  22. field — for sport
  23. spring — of water
  24. cue — a signal

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