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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. current — of water
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. cold — an illness
  9. current — happening now
  10. current — electric
  11. suit — clothes
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pound — a weight
  14. suit — in cards
  15. band — a music group
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — not warm
  18. tear — from crying
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. suit — to fit
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. tear — to rip

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