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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. clip — a video
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. clip — for paper
  5. drill — army training
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. last — finally
  8. last — to go on
  9. drill — the tool
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — of the year
  12. fork — in a road
  13. clip — to cut
  14. current — happening now
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. last — final
  17. branch — a division
  18. current — of water
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. drill — a practice
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. leaves — to go away

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