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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stem — to come from
  4. file — a tool
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — the earth
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. deal — to handle
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. current — of water
  13. toast — bread
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. craft — a skill
  16. wind — moving air
  17. current — happening now
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. craft — boats
  20. ground — a position
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a line of people
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. stem — a stem cell

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