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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. track — a song
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. track — a path
  6. current — happening now
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. saw — the tool
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. game — a match
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. rule — government
  15. wind — moving air
  16. game — wild animals
  17. wind — moving air
  18. pop — to visit
  19. track — to keep track
  20. pop — soda
  21. pop — music
  22. saw — the tool
  23. rule — a law
  24. current — of water

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