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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ball · fan · current · perch · chest · mug · key · cold

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. mug — a face
  3. key — in music
  4. current — electric
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. chest — a box
  7. chest — of your body
  8. key — the most important part
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. mug — to rob
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. cold — an illness
  15. ball — a great time
  16. chest — of your body
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. current — happening now
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — not warm
  22. mug — a cup
  23. ball — a dance
  24. key — for a lock

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