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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: spring · coach · clip · band · press · current · bat · safe

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. clip — a video
  3. band — a ring
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. current — of water
  6. current — happening now
  7. press — a publisher
  8. bat — the animal
  9. spring — a coil
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. press — newspapers
  12. press — to push
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. spring — the season
  19. band — a music group
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — for paper
  23. spring — of water
  24. current — electric

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