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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: file · coach · foot · snap · last · current · pound · field

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. snap — to click
  6. current — electric
  7. pound — a weight
  8. field — for sport
  9. last — to go on
  10. last — final
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. current — happening now
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — a subject
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. file — a tool
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. file — a document
  21. last — finally
  22. foot — a measure
  23. file — a line of people
  24. current — of water

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