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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. stock — shares
  3. prune — to trim
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. band — a ring
  6. current — of water
  7. band — a music group
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. spell — magic
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. stock — goods
  13. bat — the animal
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. lean — thin
  16. current — electric
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. current — happening now
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. spell — letters
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. lean — to bend
  23. spell — a short time
  24. perch — the fish

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