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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: roll · wind · rock · chest · land · cold · current · nail

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  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 — of water
  2. roll — a cake
  3. land — a country
  4. current — electric
  5. roll — a list
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cold — not warm
  10. current — happening now
  11. rock — a stone
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rock — music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. cold — an illness
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. land — ground
  24. land — to come down

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