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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: current · band · ground · present · court · tube · clip · fine

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. present — the time now
  3. ground — a position
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — of law
  6. current — of water
  7. tube — a container
  8. present — there
  9. ground — the earth
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. clip — a video
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. current — happening now
  14. clip — to cut
  15. court — for sport
  16. current — electric
  17. band — a music group
  18. ground — crushed
  19. present — a gift
  20. fine — all right
  21. clip — for paper
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. tube — the underground
  24. fine — high quality

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