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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: bank · rush · current · clip · wound · mug · spring · chest

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. current — electric
  3. current — happening now
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — a coil
  6. current — of water
  7. chest — a box
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bank — for money
  10. clip — to cut
  11. spring — the season
  12. mug — to rob
  13. bank — of a river
  14. bank — for money
  15. mug — a face
  16. clip — for paper
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. clip — a video
  20. mug — a cup
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. chest — of your body

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