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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. current — of water
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. current — electric
  6. mine — for digging
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. snap — to click
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. fork — in a road
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. dip — to sink
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. stand — to bear
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bat — the animal
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. current — happening now
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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