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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: clip · dip · club · wind · branch · press · current · track

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. current — of water
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. track — a song
  5. current — happening now
  6. dip — to sink
  7. track — a path
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. clip — a video
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. track — to keep track
  15. clip — for paper
  16. club — for golf
  17. clip — to cut
  18. press — a publisher
  19. press — to push
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — moving air
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. press — newspapers
  24. branch — a division

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