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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: coach · current · stick · shower · fall · cell · mine · pound

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. pound — a weight
  5. current — happening now
  6. fall — to drop
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — to wash
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. mine — for digging
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — in biology
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. current — of water
  18. shower — rain
  19. cell — a phone
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. fall — the season
  24. coach — a trainer

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