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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: bear · current · wind · arm · bank · hand · land · court

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. court — of a king
  3. land — a country
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. wind — moving air
  8. court — of law
  9. bank — for money
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wind — moving air
  13. current — of water
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. land — to come down
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bank — of a river
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. current — happening now
  21. bank — for money
  22. court — for sport
  23. bear — the animal
  24. land — ground

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