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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: track · capital · chest · mug · nail · trunk · lean · current

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. current — of water
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a song
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mug — a cup
  7. lean — thin
  8. current — electric
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. mug — a face
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. capital — money
  13. chest — a box
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. lean — to bend
  16. current — happening now
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. track — a path
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. mug — to rob
  24. capital — a city

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