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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: track · row · chip · bank · field · swing · shower · current

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. bank — for money
  3. track — to keep track
  4. field — a subject
  5. track — a song
  6. row — to paddle
  7. current — happening now
  8. swing — to play on
  9. swing — in golf
  10. bank — for money
  11. row — a line
  12. bank — of a river
  13. swing — music
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. current — of water
  16. shower — rain
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. field — farmland
  20. chip — to eat
  21. field — for sport
  22. chip — for betting
  23. shower — to wash
  24. track — a path

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