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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. spring — of water
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. rock — music
  6. current — of water
  7. current — electric
  8. spring — a coil
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bank — for money
  11. pop — soda
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. pop — music
  14. bank — of a river
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. rock — a stone
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. pop — to visit
  19. spring — the season
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. current — happening now
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. bank — for money
  24. kick — in football

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