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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: club · content · mug · cell · bank · bass · cold · current

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. current — happening now
  3. mug — a cup
  4. current — electric
  5. club — for dancing
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. current — of water
  8. club — for golf
  9. content — the amount
  10. mug — a face
  11. bank — for money
  12. mug — to rob
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cell — a phone
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bank — for money
  18. club — a group
  19. bass — low music
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. content — happy
  22. bank — of a river
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cell — in a prison

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