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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: current · snap · spring · drill · date · coach · mug · wind

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. spring — of water
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mug — a face
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mug — a cup
  10. wind — moving air
  11. current — happening now
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. drill — a practice
  14. spring — a coil
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. snap — to click
  17. drill — the tool
  18. date — the fruit
  19. current — of water
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. spring — the season
  23. drill — army training
  24. current — electric

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