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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 120 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: bound · rash · clip · track · lean · content · chest · current

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. lean — to bend
  3. clip — for paper
  4. current — electric
  5. chest — a box
  6. bound — tied together
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. content — happy
  9. lean — thin
  10. content — the amount
  11. bound — obliged
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. clip — to cut
  14. chest — of your body
  15. current — of water
  16. track — a path
  17. rash — hasty
  18. track — to keep track
  19. chest — of your body
  20. clip — a video
  21. bound — certain
  22. current — happening now
  23. track — a song
  24. rash — on the skin

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