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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. staff — a stick
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. firm — steady
  9. firm — a company
  10. staff — employees
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. clip — for paper
  13. clip — a video
  14. mine — for digging
  15. current — happening now
  16. sharp — clever
  17. clip — to cut
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. firm — decided
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. current — electric
  24. staff — employees

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