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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: clip · club · race · cold · ball · current · leaves · board

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. club — for dancing
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. board — to get on
  6. cold — not warm
  7. current — electric
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. current — of water
  10. clip — a video
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. race — humankind
  13. cold — an illness
  14. race — the arms race
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. ball — a dance
  18. ball — a great time
  19. clip — for paper
  20. club — a group
  21. club — for golf
  22. clip — to cut
  23. board — a committee
  24. race — a contest

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