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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: chest · current · cell · cap · staff · pound

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. staff — a stick
  3. staff — employees
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. cap — of ice
  10. staff — employees
  11. chest — a box
  12. cap — a hat
  13. pound — a weight
  14. current — electric
  15. cap — a lid
  16. chest — of your body
  17. cell — in biology
  18. current — happening now

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