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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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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: chair · pit · club · hide · cap · current · cell · march

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. cell — a phone
  4. current — of water
  5. march — the month
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. pit — a hole
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. march — the month
  10. club — for golf
  11. pit — in a race
  12. club — for dancing
  13. club — a group
  14. march — music
  15. chair — a leader
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cap — a hat
  18. current — happening now
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. cap — of ice
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. cap — a lid

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