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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: current · clip · present · snap · chest · nail · swing · mate

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. clip — to cut
  3. present — a gift
  4. chest — of your body
  5. present — there
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mate — to breed
  8. chest — a box
  9. snap — to click
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — to play on
  13. current — electric
  14. mate — a partner
  15. current — of water
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. swing — in golf
  19. clip — a video
  20. mate — a friend
  21. chest — of your body
  22. present — the time now
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. current — happening now

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