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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. perch — the fish
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. pop — music
  5. pop — soda
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bore — to tire
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. bore — to drill
  11. tube — the underground
  12. swing — to play on
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. swing — in golf
  16. pop — to visit
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. mark — a trace
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. tube — a container
  21. current — electric
  22. current — happening now
  23. mark — a grade
  24. swing — music

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