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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: lie · date · bat · net · current · charge · wound · band

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. band — a ring
  3. band — a music group
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. current — electric
  8. bat — the animal
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. current — of water
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. net — after costs
  15. charge — electricity
  16. net — for catching
  17. date — the fruit
  18. charge — a price
  19. wound — an injury
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. net — in sport
  22. charge — in control
  23. current — happening now
  24. lie — to recline

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