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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: swing · date · sharp · bat · bass · face · current · bank

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. current — electric
  3. swing — in golf
  4. bat — the animal
  5. face — part of the head
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. bass — low music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. bank — for money
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bank — for money
  13. face — to confront
  14. bass — the fish
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. swing — music
  18. face — to point toward
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. current — of water
  21. date — the fruit
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. current — happening now
  24. bank — of a river

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