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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: file · current · capital · track · arm · prune · straw · rock

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. file — a document
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. current — of water
  6. prune — to trim
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. track — a path
  11. current — happening now
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. file — a tool
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. file — a line of people
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. capital — a city
  18. track — a song
  19. capital — money
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. current — electric
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rock — a stone
  24. track — to keep track

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