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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: straw · wave · court · leaves · current · rash · clip · jam

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. current — electric
  3. clip — to cut
  4. current — of water
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. clip — a video
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. court — for sport
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. clip — for paper
  12. rash — hasty
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. court — of law
  21. court — of a king
  22. current — happening now
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. wave — of the sea

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