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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: kid · firm · ball · trunk · file · race · current · straw

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. current — electric
  3. kid — child
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. race — a contest
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. current — happening now
  8. race — humankind
  9. ball — a great time
  10. current — of water
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. ball — a dance
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. firm — steady
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. race — the arms race
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. kid — to tease
  21. file — a tool
  22. firm — a company
  23. firm — decided
  24. ball — a round shape

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