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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: content · current · date · wake · mine · ground · wind · fan

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. date — the fruit
  3. wake — a trail
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. content — happy
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. current — electric
  11. wind — moving air
  12. ground — crushed
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. current — of water
  16. ground — the earth
  17. wind — moving air
  18. current — happening now
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. content — the amount

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