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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 116 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. stock — shares
  3. cell — in biology
  4. root — the cause
  5. current — electric
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. stand — to bear
  8. march — the month
  9. stock — goods
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. pop — music
  13. cell — a phone
  14. pop — to visit
  15. current — of water
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — of a word
  18. march — music
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. march — the month
  23. current — happening now
  24. mine — for digging

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