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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.

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: trunk · track · stand · current · kid · spring · hide · fall

  1. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. kid — child
  4. current — happening now
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. fall — to drop
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. track — a song
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. stand — to bear
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. fall — to drop
  15. spring — of water
  16. fall — the season
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. track — a path
  19. kid — to tease
  20. track — to keep track
  21. spring — a coil
  22. current — of water
  23. spring — the season
  24. trunk — of a tree

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