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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: key · wave · hand · track · bark · coach · current · cold

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. key — for a lock
  4. bark — to shout
  5. key — in music
  6. track — a song
  7. current — happening now
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. cold — an illness
  10. current — electric
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. key — the most important part
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. current — of water
  20. track — to keep track
  21. hand — in cards
  22. track — a path
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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