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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: hand · cue · file · clip · stick · dip · wind · current

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. cue — a signal
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cue — for pool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. current — electric
  9. wind — moving air
  10. cue — a hint
  11. dip — to sink
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. current — of water
  14. wind — moving air
  15. clip — for paper
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. file — a document
  18. hand — help
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. file — a tool
  21. hand — in cards
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. dip — a sauce

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