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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: bass · current · fall · bat · race · bank · straw · chip

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. chip — to eat
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — of a river
  5. chip — for betting
  6. race — humankind
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. bass — low music
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. bank — for money
  11. race — a contest
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. current — electric
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bass — the fish
  17. current — of water
  18. current — happening now
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. race — the arms race
  21. fall — the season
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. chip — in a computer

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