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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. net — after costs
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. court — of a king
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. net — for catching
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. stem — to come from
  13. current — electric
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. court — for sport
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. row — to paddle
  21. net — in sport
  22. row — a line
  23. court — of law
  24. current — of water

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