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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: current · land · wave · mine · hand · pop · sharp · rush

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. rush — hurry
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. land — a country
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. hand — in cards
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. pop — soda
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. pop — to visit
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. current — of water
  17. current — electric
  18. mine — for digging
  19. pop — music
  20. land — ground
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. hand — help
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. land — to come down

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