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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. hand — help
  3. stem — to come from
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. current — of water
  6. current — happening now
  7. content — the amount
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. deal — to handle
  12. cell — a phone
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. hand — in cards
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. current — electric
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. content — happy
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. cell — in biology
  24. nail — on a finger

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