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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: stock · kid · clip · current · pass · track · pop · spell

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. pop — music
  3. pass — a permit
  4. kid — child
  5. clip — to cut
  6. track — a song
  7. spell — a short time
  8. track — a path
  9. stock — shares
  10. track — to keep track
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. pop — soda
  13. clip — for paper
  14. current — electric
  15. spell — letters
  16. current — of water
  17. kid — to tease
  18. pop — to visit
  19. spell — magic
  20. clip — a video
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. stock — goods
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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