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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: ground · track · chest · current · tear · prune · safe · club

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. prune — to trim
  3. current — of water
  4. club — for dancing
  5. track — to keep track
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. current — happening now
  8. club — for golf
  9. tear — from crying
  10. prune — to trim
  11. chest — a box
  12. track — a path
  13. chest — of your body
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — a position
  16. current — electric
  17. track — a song
  18. tear — from crying
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. chest — of your body
  22. club — a group
  23. ground — the earth
  24. tear — to rip

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