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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. file — a line of people
  3. current — of water
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. current — electric
  6. current — happening now
  7. chest — of your body
  8. file — a document
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. club — for dancing
  12. wind — moving air
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. last — finally
  15. club — a group
  16. last — final
  17. chest — a box
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. last — to go on
  20. club — for golf
  21. file — a tool
  22. branch — a division
  23. wind — moving air
  24. chest — of your body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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