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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: capital · current · net · wind · mine · bark · board · rock

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. net — in sport
  3. mine — for digging
  4. board — to get on
  5. board — a committee
  6. bark — to shout
  7. current — happening now
  8. net — after costs
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. current — of water
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. wind — moving air
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. rock — a stone
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. net — for catching
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. rock — music
  24. capital — a city

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