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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. rash — hasty
  3. pop — soda
  4. stem — to come from
  5. prune — to trim
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. bound — tied together
  9. pop — to visit
  10. current — electric
  11. bound — obliged
  12. hand — help
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. stock — goods
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pop — music
  18. bound — certain
  19. stock — shares
  20. current — happening now
  21. rash — a series
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. rash — on the skin

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