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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. chest — a box
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. chest — of your body
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. current — of water
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. ground — the earth
  10. mine — for digging
  11. clip — a video
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. ground — a position
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. rock — a stone
  16. current — electric
  17. pound — a weight
  18. rock — music
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. chest — of your body
  21. clip — to cut
  22. ground — crushed
  23. clip — for paper
  24. pound — to hit hard

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