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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: branch · current · ground · clip · kid · fan · board · pit

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. clip — for paper
  9. kid — to tease
  10. board — to get on
  11. pit — in a race
  12. current — happening now
  13. clip — to cut
  14. current — of water
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. clip — a video
  17. ground — a position
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. ground — the earth
  20. current — electric
  21. board — a committee
  22. branch — a division
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. ground — crushed

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