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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 116 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: fork · rash · chair · current · swing · land · rock · tear

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. swing — in golf
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rash — hasty
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. current — of water
  9. land — a country
  10. fork — in a road
  11. rash — a series
  12. tear — to rip
  13. rock — music
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. tear — from crying
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. swing — music
  18. current — happening now
  19. rock — a stone
  20. land — ground
  21. swing — to play on
  22. land — to come down
  23. current — electric
  24. chair — to sit on

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