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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: land · mine · current · charge · straw · prune · content · hide

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. content — happy
  4. charge — a price
  5. prune — to trim
  6. land — to come down
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. current — of water
  9. current — happening now
  10. land — ground
  11. current — electric
  12. land — a country
  13. charge — electricity
  14. prune — to trim
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. charge — in control
  19. content — the amount
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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