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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. row — to paddle
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. charge — electricity
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. chest — of your body
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. game — a match
  10. charge — a price
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. current — electric
  14. cell — a phone
  15. chest — a box
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. current — of water
  18. rock — music
  19. cell — in biology
  20. row — a line
  21. rock — a stone
  22. chest — of your body
  23. charge — in control
  24. game — wild animals

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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