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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. current — happening now
  5. bank — for money
  6. cold — not warm
  7. chair — a leader
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. fall — to drop
  11. plane — a tool
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. fall — the season
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. cold — an illness
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bank — for money
  20. current — of water
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. current — electric

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