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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: mark · row · chip · cold · current · bulb · coach · swing

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bulb — for light
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — music
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. bulb — for light
  11. mark — a trace
  12. current — of water
  13. current — electric
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. swing — in golf
  16. row — a line
  17. mark — a grade
  18. row — to paddle
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chip — to eat
  23. current — happening now
  24. chip — for betting

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