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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.

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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: cell · content · club · spring · net · trunk · current · nail

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — happy
  3. spring — the season
  4. content — the amount
  5. current — electric
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. club — for dancing
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. club — a group
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. club — for golf
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — after costs
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cell — in biology
  21. current — happening now
  22. cell — a phone
  23. current — of water
  24. nail — on a finger

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