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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. object — to protest
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. content — happy
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wind — moving air
  9. current — happening now
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. wound — an injury
  14. current — of water
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. saw — the tool
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. saw — the tool
  19. object — a thing
  20. object — an aim
  21. wind — moving air
  22. content — the amount
  23. current — electric
  24. pitcher — a jug

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