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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. shower — to wash
  3. current — happening now
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. bound — obliged
  6. spring — of water
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. chip — for betting
  10. board — to get on
  11. spring — the season
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. board — a committee
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. wake — a trail
  16. chip — to eat
  17. bound — tied together
  18. bound — certain
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. spring — a coil
  22. stem — to come from
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. 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