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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. track — a path
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. track — to keep track
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. track — a song
  9. current — happening now
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. cold — an illness
  12. current — of water
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. clip — to cut
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. clip — a video
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. pass — a permit
  21. clip — for paper
  22. cold — not warm
  23. kick — in football
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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