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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: current · last · tube · bay · board · chest · spring · mine

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. chest — of your body
  4. last — finally
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. board — a committee
  7. current — electric
  8. current — happening now
  9. spring — the season
  10. mine — for digging
  11. tube — a container
  12. board — to get on
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. spring — of water
  16. chest — of your body
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. spring — a coil
  19. last — to go on
  20. chest — a box
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. last — final
  23. tube — the underground
  24. mine — an explosive

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