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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 120 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: lean · ground · march · pop · clip · pitcher · current · arm

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. current — of water
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. lean — to bend
  8. ground — the earth
  9. pop — soda
  10. lean — thin
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. clip — to cut
  13. ground — crushed
  14. clip — a video
  15. ground — a position
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. march — the month
  18. clip — for paper
  19. march — the month
  20. march — music
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. pop — music
  23. pop — to visit
  24. current — electric

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