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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: rush · clip · wave · current · stand · bark · ground · spell

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. clip — to cut
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. current — electric
  6. ground — crushed
  7. spell — magic
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. ground — a position
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. current — of water
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. stand — to bear
  15. clip — for paper
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. current — happening now
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. clip — a video
  20. bark — to shout
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. spell — letters
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. spell — a short time

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