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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 116 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. file — a tool
  4. current — of water
  5. pop — music
  6. can — to be able to
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tear — from crying
  9. can — a tin
  10. file — a line of people
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. can — a tin
  14. pop — soda
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. current — electric
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — to come from
  20. pop — to visit
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. file — a document
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. tear — from crying

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