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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: season · track · racket · arm · current · content · bark · spring

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a song
  4. current — electric
  5. current — of water
  6. track — a path
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spring — of water
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. spring — the season
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. season — in sport
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bark — to shout
  20. spring — a coil
  21. content — the amount
  22. season — of the year
  23. content — happy
  24. bark — of a tree

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