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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: ground · current · stick · court · roll · file · last · present

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. current — of water
  3. court — of a king
  4. current — electric
  5. present — there
  6. court — for sport
  7. present — a gift
  8. roll — a cake
  9. file — a tool
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. ground — the earth
  12. file — a document
  13. last — final
  14. last — to go on
  15. roll — a list
  16. current — happening now
  17. ground — crushed
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. file — a line of people
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. court — of law
  23. last — finally
  24. present — the time now

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