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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. current — electric
  3. cold — not warm
  4. season — in sport
  5. current — of water
  6. season — of the year
  7. object — to protest
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bass — the fish
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — a practice
  12. drill — the tool
  13. bass — low music
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. object — a thing
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. cold — an illness
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. object — an aim
  23. current — happening now
  24. racket — for tennis

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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