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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. charge — electricity
  3. content — the amount
  4. wound — an injury
  5. current — happening now
  6. kid — child
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. scale — size or range
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. content — happy
  13. charge — a price
  14. scale — in music
  15. fork — in a road
  16. current — of water
  17. charge — in control
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. current — electric
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. wave — of the sea

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