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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: kid · foot · file · current · band · track

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. foot — a measure
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. file — a tool
  6. kid — to tease
  7. track — a song
  8. kid — child
  9. current — of water
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. track — a path
  12. band — a ring
  13. file — a document
  14. track — to keep track
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. file — a line of people
  17. current — happening now
  18. band — a music 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