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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 116 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. current — electric
  7. land — a country
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. bear — the animal
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. land — ground
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. kid — child
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. kid — to tease
  16. land — to come down
  17. bear — the animal
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. current — happening now
  20. current — of water
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. wake — a trail
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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