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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 · trunk · wind · chair · tube · content · current · stick

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. current — happening now
  5. content — the amount
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. tube — a container
  8. content — happy
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. tube — the underground
  11. wound — an injury
  12. current — of water
  13. wind — moving air
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. current — electric
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. chair — a leader
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. wound — an injury

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