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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.

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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: bat · current · hand · last · staff · bear · can · content

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. content — the amount
  3. can — a tin
  4. content — happy
  5. last — finally
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. current — electric
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. can — a tin
  12. bat — the animal
  13. last — final
  14. last — to go on
  15. hand — in cards
  16. hand — help
  17. current — happening now
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. staff — a stick
  21. can — to be able to
  22. staff — employees
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. staff — employees

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