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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 120 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. current — of water
  3. spell — magic
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. spell — a short time
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. object — to protest
  8. hand — help
  9. cap — a hat
  10. tear — from crying
  11. spell — letters
  12. object — a thing
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cap — a lid
  15. current — happening now
  16. cap — of ice
  17. current — electric
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. hand — in cards
  21. tear — to rip
  22. tear — from crying
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. object — an aim

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