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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 · wound · current · season · straw · snap · cue · bass

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. bass — the fish
  3. cue — for pool
  4. wound — an injury
  5. season — of the year
  6. bass — low music
  7. spring — a coil
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. season — in sport
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. cue — a hint
  13. current — of water
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. wound — an injury
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. current — happening now
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. spring — the season
  20. spring — of water
  21. snap — to click
  22. cue — a signal
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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