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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rash — hasty
  3. perch — the fish
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. land — ground
  8. rash — a series
  9. current — electric
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. press — a publisher
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. press — newspapers
  16. game — wild animals
  17. branch — a division
  18. press — to push
  19. current — of water
  20. current — happening now
  21. land — a country
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. stem — to come from
  24. game — a match

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