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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 · club · mine · chip · field · shower · bass · press

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. chip — to eat
  3. field — for sport
  4. club — a group
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bass — the fish
  7. current — electric
  8. mine — for digging
  9. field — farmland
  10. press — newspapers
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. current — happening now
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. chip — for betting
  17. club — for dancing
  18. club — for golf
  19. field — a subject
  20. current — of water
  21. press — to push
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — to wash
  24. bass — low music

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