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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 124 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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  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. current — electric
  2. present — there
  3. bound — tied together
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. cell — in biology
  7. charge — a price
  8. clip — a video
  9. cell — a phone
  10. current — of water
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. charge — electricity
  13. present — the time now
  14. charge — in control
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bound — obliged
  17. clip — to cut
  18. clip — for paper
  19. prune — to trim
  20. present — a gift
  21. bound — certain
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. current — happening now
  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