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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.

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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: clip · mine · pass · pound · current · wake · cold · bank

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. current — happening now
  3. bank — of a river
  4. bank — for money
  5. mine — for digging
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. current — electric
  9. pass — a permit
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. clip — for paper
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. clip — to cut
  14. cold — not warm
  15. clip — a video
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. current — of water
  18. bank — for money
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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