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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: rock · chest · lash · mouse · spring · march · shower · current

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — a box
  4. shower — to wash
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. march — the month
  11. rock — music
  12. current — electric
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. current — happening now
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. spring — of water
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. rock — a stone
  24. shower — rain

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