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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 · chest · mouse · file · pitch · clip · current · shower

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. file — a document
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. current — of water
  5. chest — a box
  6. shower — to wash
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. pitch — completely
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. clip — a video
  11. current — electric
  12. clip — for paper
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. current — happening now
  15. stock — shares
  16. file — a line of people
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. clip — to cut
  21. chest — of your body
  22. file — a tool
  23. shower — rain
  24. stock — goods

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