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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: spring · shower · band · nail · wound · charge · current · season

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. charge — a price
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. shower — to wash
  5. wound — an injury
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. spring — the season
  8. spring — a coil
  9. shower — rain
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. wound — an injury
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. season — of the year
  15. band — a music group
  16. charge — in control
  17. spring — of water
  18. current — happening now
  19. current — of water
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. season — in sport
  22. current — electric
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. charge — electricity

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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