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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 116 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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. hand — help
  3. hand — in cards
  4. fall — the season
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. band — a ring
  8. rush — hurry
  9. current — happening now
  10. content — happy
  11. bound — certain
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. bound — obliged
  17. fall — to drop
  18. band — a music group
  19. bound — tied together
  20. current — electric
  21. fall — to drop
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. content — the amount
  24. trunk — of a car

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