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

Word bank: cap · current · march · row · calf · saw

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. row — a line
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. cap — of ice
  5. current — happening now
  6. row — to paddle
  7. march — the month
  8. current — electric
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. cap — a hat
  11. march — the month
  12. cap — a lid
  13. current — of water
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. march — 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