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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: chest · mate · saw · bat · club · ground · current · cabinet

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. club — for dancing
  8. ground — the earth
  9. mate — to breed
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bat — the animal
  12. chest — a box
  13. ground — crushed
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mate — a partner
  17. chest — of your body
  18. club — a group
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. chest — of your body
  21. current — of water
  22. ground — a position
  23. club — for golf
  24. current — happening now

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