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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: wound · rule · hand · suit · clip · current · bear · racket

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. current — electric
  3. clip — for paper
  4. current — happening now
  5. clip — a video
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. current — of water
  8. bear — the animal
  9. suit — in cards
  10. bear — the animal
  11. wound — an injury
  12. suit — clothes
  13. rule — a law
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. suit — to fit
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. clip — to cut
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. rule — government

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