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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 had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. lean — thin
  3. current — electric
  4. capital — money
  5. row — to paddle
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. present — a gift
  8. rule — government
  9. current — of water
  10. rule — a law
  11. current — happening now
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. capital — a city
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. present — there
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. lean — to bend
  21. row — a line
  22. present — the time now
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. patient — a sick person

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