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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: present · club · bore · spell · current · kid · clip · stem

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. current — electric
  3. present — there
  4. bore — to tire
  5. current — of water
  6. spell — magic
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. club — for dancing
  9. kid — child
  10. spell — letters
  11. current — happening now
  12. present — the time now
  13. clip — to cut
  14. present — a gift
  15. clip — for paper
  16. clip — a video
  17. spell — a short time
  18. club — for golf
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. bore — to drill
  22. stem — to come from
  23. kid — to tease
  24. club — a group

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