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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: object · hand · clip · rule · cap · pound · current · root

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. current — electric
  3. hand — help
  4. clip — for paper
  5. current — of water
  6. cap — a hat
  7. rule — government
  8. root — of a plant
  9. root — of a word
  10. cap — a lid
  11. root — the cause
  12. object — an aim
  13. pound — a weight
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. object — a thing
  16. hand — in cards
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. current — happening now
  19. rule — a law
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. clip — to cut
  22. object — to protest
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. clip — a video

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