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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 · current · clip · wind · trunk · suit · rule · net

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. wound — an injury
  6. net — for catching
  7. wind — moving air
  8. net — in sport
  9. rule — government
  10. current — electric
  11. suit — in cards
  12. current — of water
  13. suit — to fit
  14. current — happening now
  15. wound — an injury
  16. clip — for paper
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. net — after costs
  20. clip — to cut
  21. rule — a law
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. clip — a video
  24. wind — moving air

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