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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. current — electric
  4. roll — a list
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. bass — low music
  7. row — a line
  8. current — of water
  9. ground — the earth
  10. game — a match
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. game — wild animals
  13. current — happening now
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. ground — crushed
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. tube — the underground
  20. bass — the fish
  21. tube — a container
  22. roll — a cake
  23. row — to paddle
  24. row — a quarrel

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