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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 116 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: hide · wound · mate · current · cold · tube · stick · bank

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. current — of water
  3. tube — the underground
  4. mate — to breed
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. bank — for money
  7. cold — not warm
  8. mate — a friend
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mate — a partner
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. cold — an illness
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bank — of a river
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. tube — a container
  19. wound — an injury
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bank — for money
  23. current — happening now
  24. tube — in a tire

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