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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: firm · bass · board · present · clip · pop · current · spring

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. 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. bass — the fish
  2. firm — steady
  3. board — to get on
  4. spring — of water
  5. present — the time now
  6. spring — a coil
  7. clip — to cut
  8. firm — a company
  9. spring — the season
  10. board — a committee
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. current — electric
  13. pop — music
  14. clip — for paper
  15. pop — soda
  16. bass — low music
  17. current — happening now
  18. present — a gift
  19. pop — to visit
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. firm — decided
  22. present — there
  23. clip — a video
  24. current — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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