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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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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: wound · board · kid · mine · firm · snap · content · current

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  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. current — happening now
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — to tease
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. content — the amount
  6. firm — steady
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. current — of water
  9. snap — to click
  10. current — electric
  11. wound — an injury
  12. firm — a company
  13. kid — child
  14. board — to get on
  15. mine — for digging
  16. wound — an injury
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. board — a committee
  21. firm — decided
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  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