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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.

Make a worksheet

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: nail · clip · current · kid · mug · pitcher

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. clip — for paper
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. clip — to cut
  5. kid — child
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mug — a face
  9. mug — to rob
  10. current — of water
  11. kid — to tease
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. current — electric
  14. mug — a cup
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. clip — a video
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. nail — on a finger

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