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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. track — to keep track
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. track — a path
  5. plane — a tool
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. file — a document
  8. pound — a weight
  9. sharp — clever
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. track — a song
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. file — a tool
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. current — electric
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. file — a line of people
  24. current — happening now

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