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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 · cold · chip · drill · foot · fall · rash · mate

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. cold — an illness
  3. mate — to breed
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. mate — a partner
  7. current — happening now
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. drill — army training
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — to drop
  12. foot — a measure
  13. drill — the tool
  14. chip — to eat
  15. cold — not warm
  16. rash — a series
  17. rash — hasty
  18. current — electric
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. current — of water
  21. fall — the season
  22. chip — for betting
  23. drill — a practice
  24. foot — part of the body

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