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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: current · chair · kick · swing · cell · cold

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. swing — music
  4. cell — in biology
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. chair — a leader
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. current — happening now
  10. current — electric
  11. swing — in golf
  12. cell — a phone
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. cold — an illness
  15. current — of water
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — in football
  18. swing — to play on

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