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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rash — a series
  4. can — a tin
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. can — to be able to
  7. can — a tin
  8. shower — rain
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. wind — moving air
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. current — of water
  15. rash — hasty
  16. current — electric
  17. wind — moving air
  18. shower — a meteor shower

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