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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. current — happening now
  3. current — of water
  4. track — a song
  5. rash — hasty
  6. band — a ring
  7. content — the amount
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. stand — to bear
  13. current — electric
  14. band — a music group
  15. rash — a series
  16. mine — for digging
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. track — a path
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. content — happy
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. track — to keep track
  24. band — a rubber band

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