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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 120 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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. current — electric
  3. season — of the year
  4. object — to protest
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. row — a line
  7. dip — to sink
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. row — to paddle
  13. object — a thing
  14. file — a tool
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a line of people
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. current — happening now
  20. object — an aim
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. current — of water
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. mine — for digging

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