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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.

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: current · mate · land · saw · march · trunk · press · sharp

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. saw — the tool
  4. land — ground
  5. mate — a friend
  6. sharp — clever
  7. march — music
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. current — electric
  10. press — to push
  11. land — a country
  12. march — the month
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. mate — to breed
  16. land — to come down
  17. current — happening now
  18. press — a publisher
  19. saw — the tool
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. mate — a partner
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. press — newspapers
  24. march — the month

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