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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. content — happy
  3. club — for golf
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. spell — a short time
  6. club — for dancing
  7. spell — letters
  8. row — to paddle
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. current — electric
  11. row — a line
  12. shower — to wash
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. content — the amount
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. club — a group
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. current — happening now
  22. shower — rain
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. spell — magic

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