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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. current — happening now
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. current — of water
  5. spell — magic
  6. can — to be able to
  7. spell — letters
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bark — to shout
  11. band — a music group
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pit — a hole
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. stem — to come from
  21. spell — a short time
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. current — electric

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