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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. current — happening now
  3. craft — a skill
  4. charge — electricity
  5. pit — in a race
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — in music
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. clip — to cut
  10. craft — boats
  11. current — of water
  12. clip — for paper
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. clip — a video
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. charge — a price
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. current — electric
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. pit — a hole
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — not warm
  24. charge — in control

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