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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: dip · fan · cold · present · current · deal · clip · bark

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bark — to shout
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — there
  8. current — happening now
  9. deal — to handle
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. clip — for paper
  14. current — of water
  15. clip — a video
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. dip — to sink
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. present — a gift
  22. current — electric
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. bark — of a tree

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