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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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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: ground · race · firm · straw · net · club · current · fan

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. ground — a position
  3. race — humankind
  4. current — electric
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — for dancing
  7. net — for catching
  8. ground — crushed
  9. net — after costs
  10. firm — decided
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. ground — the earth
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. current — happening now
  15. firm — a company
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. net — in sport
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. race — a contest
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. current — of water
  22. race — the arms race
  23. firm — steady
  24. club — a group

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