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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. field — farmland
  3. club — for golf
  4. current — happening now
  5. ground — crushed
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. board — a committee
  8. board — to get on
  9. land — a country
  10. land — ground
  11. field — a subject
  12. land — to come down
  13. ground — the earth
  14. key — the most important part
  15. club — a group
  16. march — the month
  17. ground — a position
  18. club — for dancing
  19. march — music
  20. key — for a lock
  21. march — the month
  22. current — electric
  23. key — in music
  24. field — for sport

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