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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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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 · clip · wind · object · pitch · cell

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pitch — completely
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. current — electric
  5. current — happening now
  6. wind — moving air
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — for paper
  9. object — to protest
  10. cell — in biology
  11. wind — moving air
  12. current — of water
  13. clip — to cut
  14. cell — a phone
  15. object — a thing
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. object — an aim
  18. pitch — a sales talk

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