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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. band — a ring
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. wind — moving air
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. wind — moving air
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. bark — to shout
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. current — of water
  20. current — happening now
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. band — a music group
  24. trunk — of a tree

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