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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 116 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: ball · last · fan · lean · spring · fall · content · current

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — the season
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. spring — of water
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. ball — a great time
  8. last — final
  9. fall — to drop
  10. last — to go on
  11. lean — to bend
  12. current — of water
  13. last — finally
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. content — happy
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. fall — to drop
  20. ball — a dance
  21. fall — the season
  22. lean — thin
  23. current — happening now
  24. content — the amount

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