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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: current · march · file · content · nail · clip · key · kid

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. content — happy
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. file — a document
  5. kid — to tease
  6. march — the month
  7. file — a tool
  8. clip — to cut
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. clip — for paper
  11. file — a line of people
  12. content — the amount
  13. clip — a video
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kid — child
  17. current — of water
  18. key — for a lock
  19. current — electric
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. key — in music
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. current — happening now

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