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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 · ground · kid · perch · hand · can · chair · lean

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. perch — the fish
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. kid — to tease
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — in cards
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. can — to be able to
  9. current — electric
  10. lean — thin
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. ground — the earth
  14. current — happening now
  15. kid — child
  16. lean — to bend
  17. can — a tin
  18. current — of water
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chair — a leader
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. ground — crushed
  24. ground — a position

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