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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. can — a tin
  3. current — electric
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. clip — for paper
  6. spring — of water
  7. season — of the year
  8. swing — in golf
  9. season — in sport
  10. can — to be able to
  11. spring — the season
  12. bank — for money
  13. stem — to come from
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. can — a tin
  16. current — happening now
  17. bank — of a river
  18. clip — to cut
  19. current — of water
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bank — for money
  22. clip — a video
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. swing — music

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