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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: prune · snap · kid · nail · current · band · pitcher · face

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. kid — child
  4. face — to confront
  5. prune — to trim
  6. face — to point toward
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. face — part of the head
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. snap — to click
  13. prune — to trim
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. band — a ring
  17. band — a music group
  18. current — of water
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. current — electric
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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