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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.

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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. rest — a break
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. current — happening now
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. board — to get on
  8. branch — a division
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — what's left
  12. current — of water
  13. board — a committee
  14. band — a ring
  15. band — a music group
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. cold — not warm
  18. current — electric

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