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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 116 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. mate — to breed
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. current — electric
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. cap — a hat
  8. mate — a friend
  9. cap — a lid
  10. kid — to tease
  11. pop — to visit
  12. current — happening now
  13. mate — a partner
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. season — of the year
  16. pop — music
  17. cap — of ice
  18. hand — help
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. season — in sport
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. current — of water
  23. hand — in cards
  24. kid — child

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