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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. current — of water
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. deal — to handle
  7. file — a tool
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. mug — a face
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. current — happening now
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. current — electric
  15. last — final
  16. file — a document
  17. snap — to click
  18. last — to go on
  19. mug — a cup
  20. mug — to rob
  21. file — a line of people
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. pitch — completely

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