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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. cell — in biology
  3. kid — child
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. cue — for pool
  7. current — electric
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a document
  10. pound — a weight
  11. file — a tool
  12. mate — a friend
  13. sharp — clever
  14. mate — a partner
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. cue — a hint
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. current — happening now
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. mate — to breed
  23. current — of water
  24. cell — a phone

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