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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — a phone
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. current — of water
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. kid — to tease
  9. tube — a container
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. row — a line
  16. snap — to click
  17. capital — money
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. current — electric
  20. row — to paddle
  21. kid — child
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — the underground
  24. chair — a leader

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