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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bulb — for light
  4. cap — a lid
  5. current — electric
  6. current — of water
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bulb — for light
  9. last — to go on
  10. net — after costs
  11. ground — the earth
  12. current — happening now
  13. last — finally
  14. last — final
  15. wound — an injury
  16. net — in sport
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. net — for catching
  19. mug — to rob
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — of ice
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. mug — a face
  24. mug — a cup

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