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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: bass · press · bat · wind · nail · saw · current · last

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. current — electric
  3. last — finally
  4. last — final
  5. saw — the tool
  6. wind — moving air
  7. saw — the tool
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. current — of water
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — the fish
  13. press — to push
  14. press — a publisher
  15. bass — low music
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. press — newspapers
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. wind — moving air
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. current — happening now
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. last — to go on

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