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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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. current — electric
  4. pop — soda
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. ball — a dance
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. row — a line
  12. pop — music
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. craft — boats
  15. current — happening now
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. mine — for digging
  18. row — to paddle
  19. bat — the animal
  20. pop — to visit
  21. craft — a skill
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. current — of water
  24. bat — for baseball

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