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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: current · wind · tear · file · field · kick

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. tear — from crying
  3. field — farmland
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. current — happening now
  7. file — a line of people
  8. file — a tool
  9. kick — in football
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — a subject
  12. current — electric
  13. tear — from crying
  14. current — of water
  15. wind — moving air
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. tear — to rip
  18. kick — a thrill

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