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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. current — electric
  3. court — for sport
  4. land — a country
  5. court — of a king
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. land — to come down
  9. race — a contest
  10. current — happening now
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. stand — to bear
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. land — ground
  15. wind — moving air
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. race — humankind
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. current — of water
  21. race — the arms race
  22. rush — hurry
  23. court — of law
  24. wind — moving air

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