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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. clip — to cut
  3. track — a song
  4. track — a path
  5. fine — all right
  6. rest — what's left
  7. clip — a video
  8. current — electric
  9. clip — for paper
  10. rest — what's left
  11. pound — a weight
  12. rest — a break
  13. fine — high quality
  14. current — of water
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. track — to keep track
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. fine — a penalty

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