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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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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: band · track · spring · current · content · fall · wound · saw

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. fall — to drop
  3. saw — the tool
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. current — electric
  6. spring — a coil
  7. current — of water
  8. band — a music group
  9. wound — an injury
  10. track — a song
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. track — a path
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. saw — the tool
  15. fall — the season
  16. track — to keep track
  17. fall — to drop
  18. content — the amount
  19. wound — an injury
  20. spring — of water
  21. band — a ring
  22. spring — the season
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. content — happy

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