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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bark — to shout
  7. march — music
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. plane — a tool
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. track — a path
  13. kick — in football
  14. current — happening now
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. current — electric
  18. march — the month
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. track — a song
  22. track — to keep track
  23. march — the month
  24. straw — a straw man

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