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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: mine · land · kid · bank · tube · board · race · current

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. current — happening now
  3. kid — to tease
  4. land — ground
  5. bank — of a river
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. board — a committee
  9. current — electric
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. tube — the underground
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. tube — a container
  14. current — of water
  15. land — a country
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bank — for money
  18. land — to come down
  19. kid — child
  20. board — to get on
  21. race — the arms race
  22. race — humankind
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bank — for money

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