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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: snap · mine · drill · current · pitch · leaves · land · bark

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. land — a country
  6. mine — for digging
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. land — ground
  10. pitch — completely
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. drill — army training
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. current — electric
  16. land — to come down
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. snap — to click
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bark — to shout
  22. drill — the tool
  23. current — of water
  24. current — happening now

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