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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: clip · land · press · current · track · bass · game · mate

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. game — wild animals
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a path
  5. clip — a video
  6. land — ground
  7. clip — for paper
  8. press — a publisher
  9. current — of water
  10. mate — a friend
  11. current — electric
  12. press — to push
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. land — to come down
  15. game — a match
  16. bass — low music
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bass — the fish
  19. press — newspapers
  20. mate — a partner
  21. current — happening now
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. land — a country
  24. clip — to cut

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