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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: march · cold · wake · current · bank · chip · bark · season

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. wake — a trail
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. bank — of a river
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. current — of water
  7. march — the month
  8. current — happening now
  9. chip — to eat
  10. chip — for betting
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. cold — not warm
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bank — for money
  18. season — of the year
  19. bark — to shout
  20. march — music
  21. season — in sport
  22. bank — for money
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. march — the month

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