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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. current — happening now
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. roll — a list
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tear — from crying
  8. game — wild animals
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. cue — for pool
  11. roll — a cake
  12. current — of water
  13. game — a match
  14. snap — to click
  15. cue — a hint
  16. bat — the animal
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. fine — high quality
  19. cue — a signal
  20. current — electric
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. tear — from crying
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. roll — on a roll

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