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

Word bank: snap · current · rule · scale · wind · pitch

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. current — electric
  3. scale — size or range
  4. wind — moving air
  5. current — of water
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. current — happening now
  8. rule — a law
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. pitch — completely
  15. wind — moving air
  16. rule — government
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — in music

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