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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: wound · current · staff · cue · row · drill · saw · pit

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. staff — a stick
  3. staff — employees
  4. current — electric
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. cue — a signal
  7. drill — army training
  8. staff — employees
  9. drill — the tool
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. pit — a hole
  12. saw — the tool
  13. row — to paddle
  14. wound — an injury
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. cue — for pool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. current — happening now
  19. row — a line
  20. saw — the tool
  21. cue — a hint
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. current — of water
  24. pit — in a race

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