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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: cue · stick · straw · current · spring · staff · capital · fork

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  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. capital — money
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. current — of water
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. staff — employees
  6. spring — a coil
  7. cue — a hint
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. current — electric
  11. staff — a stick
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. staff — employees
  14. cue — for pool
  15. cue — a signal
  16. spring — of water
  17. spring — the season
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. fork — in a road
  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