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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: trunk · kid · lean · season · current · clip · charge · staff

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. season — of the year
  3. charge — in control
  4. staff — a stick
  5. charge — electricity
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. staff — employees
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. clip — to cut
  10. current — happening now
  11. charge — a price
  12. current — electric
  13. kid — child
  14. staff — employees
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. current — of water
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. lean — to bend
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. kid — to tease
  21. season — in sport
  22. clip — for paper
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. clip — a video

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