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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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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: current · club · cap · rock · bat · march · foot · lean

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. march — the month
  3. rock — music
  4. club — a group
  5. club — for dancing
  6. cap — a hat
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. current — of water
  10. foot — a measure
  11. lean — to bend
  12. current — electric
  13. cap — a lid
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. club — for golf
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rock — a stone
  18. march — the month
  19. current — happening now
  20. bat — the animal
  21. march — music
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. cap — of ice
  24. bat — for baseball

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