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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 116 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: spring · prune · bat · hand · rush · fan · current · file

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. file — a document
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. file — a line of people
  7. current — electric
  8. hand — in cards
  9. spring — a coil
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. prune — to trim
  12. current — of water
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — the season
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. file — a tool
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. rush — hurry
  19. hand — help
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. bat — the animal
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. current — happening now
  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