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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: content · rush · kick · spring · last · current · arm · tube

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. current — happening now
  4. last — final
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. spring — the season
  7. tube — the underground
  8. content — the amount
  9. last — to go on
  10. current — of water
  11. rush — hurry
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. kick — in football
  14. spring — a coil
  15. content — happy
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. last — finally
  18. spring — of water
  19. tube — a container
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. rush — to hurry
  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