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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 124 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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. firm — a company
  3. stock — shares
  4. firm — steady
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. current — electric
  9. wound — an injury
  10. current — of water
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. race — a contest
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. content — happy
  17. wound — an injury
  18. firm — decided
  19. race — humankind
  20. race — the arms race
  21. current — happening now
  22. content — the amount
  23. branch — a division
  24. kick — in football

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