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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: dip · snap · spring · current · staff · fine · bound · cold

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. current — electric
  3. cold — an illness
  4. staff — employees
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — obliged
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. spring — of water
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. current — happening now
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. snap — to click
  13. fine — high quality
  14. current — of water
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — a stick
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. cold — not warm
  21. fine — all right
  22. bound — certain
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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