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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. mark — a grade
  3. current — electric
  4. current — of water
  5. pop — soda
  6. pop — music
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chair — a leader
  9. ground — crushed
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. ground — the earth
  12. lean — to bend
  13. mine — for digging
  14. pop — to visit
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. row — to paddle
  19. current — happening now
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. mark — a trace
  22. ground — a position
  23. lean — thin
  24. row — a line

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