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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: straw · hand · current · rush · net · tube · pit · mine

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. hand — help
  4. net — after costs
  5. net — in sport
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tube — a container
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. pit — a hole
  12. current — electric
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. rush — hurry
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. mine — for digging
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. current — of water
  20. hand — in cards
  21. net — for catching
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. pit — in a race

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