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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. current — electric
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. row — to paddle
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. row — a line
  10. spell — magic
  11. sharp — clever
  12. capital — a city
  13. plane — a tool
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. current — of water
  18. saw — the tool
  19. current — happening now
  20. perch — the fish
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. spell — a short time
  23. capital — money
  24. spell — letters

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