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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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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: sharp · wind · current · prune · track · trunk · swing · bound

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. track — a song
  3. swing — to play on
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. swing — in golf
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. wind — moving air
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bound — tied together
  10. track — to keep track
  11. current — of water
  12. prune — to trim
  13. current — happening now
  14. bound — obliged
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. current — electric
  17. bound — certain
  18. track — a path
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. wind — moving air
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. prune — to trim

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