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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: hand · straw · chip · swing · bass · band · patient · current

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. swing — to play on
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. hand — help
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. chip — for betting
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. hand — in cards
  15. swing — in golf
  16. band — a ring
  17. bass — the fish
  18. current — happening now
  19. swing — music
  20. band — a music group
  21. bass — low music
  22. chip — to eat
  23. hand — part of the body
  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