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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. kid — child
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. kid — to tease
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. can — a tin
  15. date — the fruit
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. current — happening now
  18. current — of water
  19. stock — goods
  20. cell — a phone
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. current — electric
  23. stock — shares
  24. cell — in biology

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