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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: band · current · fork · wake · file · bulb · squash · land

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. current — electric
  3. squash — the sport
  4. file — a tool
  5. wake — a trail
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. band — a ring
  9. land — ground
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. current — happening now
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. squash — to crush
  15. file — a document
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. band — a music group
  18. land — a country
  19. land — to come down
  20. file — a line of people
  21. fork — in a road
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. squash — the vegetable

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