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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · ground · current · stock · clip · ruler · wound · wake

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. wound — an injury
  4. clip — a video
  5. stock — goods
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. ground — the earth
  8. current — of water
  9. clip — for paper
  10. current — happening now
  11. ground — a position
  12. ground — crushed
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. current — electric
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — a subject
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. clip — to cut
  23. wake — a trail
  24. field — for sport

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