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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. current — electric
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. file — a document
  7. wound — an injury
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. cold — not warm
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. current — of water
  12. branch — a division
  13. cue — a signal
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. content — the amount
  18. cue — for pool
  19. file — a line of people
  20. content — happy
  21. wound — an injury
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cue — a hint
  24. file — a tool

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