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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — the season
  4. current — of water
  5. track — a path
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. stem — to come from
  10. lie — to recline
  11. current — happening now
  12. wound — an injury
  13. current — electric
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. track — a song
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. spring — of water
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. rash — hasty
  23. track — to keep track
  24. file — a document

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