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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: current · pound · scale · cap · clip · cell · bound · rush

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. clip — for paper
  3. bound — obliged
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. current — happening now
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. scale — size or range
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cap — a hat
  10. clip — to cut
  11. scale — in music
  12. current — electric
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a lid
  15. bound — certain
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bound — tied together
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. clip — a video
  20. rush — hurry
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pound — a weight
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. rush — to hurry

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