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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: clip · shower · current · rule · kick · wave

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. kick — in football
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. shower — rain
  5. rule — a law
  6. current — electric
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. shower — to wash
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. clip — to cut
  13. rule — government
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. current — happening now
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. current — of water

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