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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. pop — soda
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. chest — of your body
  7. current — electric
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. rule — government
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. current — happening now
  13. current — of water
  14. chest — of your body
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. pop — music
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. wind — moving air
  19. mine — for digging
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. pop — to visit
  22. chest — a box
  23. rule — a law
  24. wind — moving air

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