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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: wind · current · race · club · season · mark · present · spring

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. wind — moving air
  4. present — the time now
  5. race — the arms race
  6. present — there
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. race — a contest
  9. club — for dancing
  10. spring — a coil
  11. season — in sport
  12. club — for golf
  13. season — of the year
  14. spring — the season
  15. spring — of water
  16. current — of water
  17. current — happening now
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. present — a gift
  20. mark — a grade
  21. current — electric
  22. wind — moving air
  23. club — a group
  24. mark — a trace

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