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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — to paddle
  4. current — electric
  5. scale — size or range
  6. shower — to wash
  7. mug — a face
  8. shower — rain
  9. mug — to rob
  10. key — in music
  11. field — for sport
  12. current — of water
  13. key — the most important part
  14. field — farmland
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. mug — a cup
  17. current — happening now
  18. scale — in music
  19. wound — an injury
  20. field — a subject
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. row — a line
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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