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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: wind · fall · pitcher · roll · mark · current · ruler · content

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. content — the amount
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. current — of water
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. content — happy
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. mark — a grade
  13. fall — to drop
  14. roll — a list
  15. fall — the season
  16. current — happening now
  17. wind — moving air
  18. current — electric
  19. roll — a cake
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. fall — to drop
  22. wind — moving air
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. ruler — for measuring

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