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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: current · file · bulb · spring · hand · bank · bat · arm

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bank — of a river
  4. bulb — for light
  5. hand — help
  6. spring — the season
  7. hand — in cards
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. current — electric
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. spring — a coil
  13. file — a tool
  14. bulb — for light
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bank — for money
  17. file — a document
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bank — for money
  21. spring — of water
  22. current — happening now
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. file — a line of people

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