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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 116 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. staff — a stick
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. current — of water
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bass — the fish
  9. kick — in football
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. bass — low music
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. saw — the tool
  16. staff — employees
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. tear — to rip
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. current — electric
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bark — to shout
  23. staff — employees
  24. current — happening now

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