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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: club · current · track · trunk · scale · chair · cap · rest

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  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. track — a path
  2. chair — a leader
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for golf
  5. rest — what's left
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. scale — size or range
  8. cap — a hat
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. cap — a lid
  11. rest — what's left
  12. current — electric
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. cap — of ice
  15. track — a song
  16. track — to keep track
  17. club — for dancing
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. rest — a break
  22. current — happening now
  23. scale — in music
  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