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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. rest — a break
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. kid — child
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. kid — to tease
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. clip — to cut
  13. current — happening now
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. rest — what's left
  16. current — electric
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. clip — a video
  20. rest — what's left
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. clip — for paper
  24. bowl — to roll

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