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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: cap · current · lie · branch · clip · arm · bound · mine

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. current — of water
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. cap — a lid
  5. bound — tied together
  6. mine — for digging
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. clip — to cut
  9. current — electric
  10. clip — a video
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bound — certain
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. branch — a division
  17. bound — obliged
  18. current — happening now
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. cap — of ice
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. lie — to recline

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