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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: object · file · wind · cold · pitch · current · bowl · spring

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. current — of water
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. spring — a coil
  5. pitch — completely
  6. file — a tool
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. file — a line of people
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. file — a document
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. spring — of water
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. object — to protest
  18. cold — an illness
  19. current — electric
  20. spring — the season
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. object — an aim
  23. object — a thing
  24. cold — not warm

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