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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: mine · hide · bank · file · snap · bark · race · current

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. snap — to click
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. file — a document
  7. current — happening now
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bank — for money
  10. race — a contest
  11. bank — of a river
  12. file — a tool
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. bank — for money
  15. current — of water
  16. race — the arms race
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. bark — to shout
  20. file — a line of people
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. race — humankind
  24. mine — for digging

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