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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. current — happening now
  6. perch — the fish
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. rock — music
  9. stock — goods
  10. stock — shares
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. current — of water
  16. snap — to click
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a tool
  19. file — a document
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. rock — a stone
  24. leaves — lets stay

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