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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. land — to come down
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. land — ground
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. mate — a friend
  8. current — happening now
  9. bark — to shout
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. land — a country
  15. mate — a partner
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mate — to breed
  19. current — electric
  20. stock — goods
  21. stock — shares
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. straw — a straw man

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