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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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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: straw · roll · pass · squash · current · stock · tear · tube

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. tube — the underground
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. tear — from crying
  7. current — happening now
  8. roll — a cake
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. stock — goods
  12. tube — a container
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. roll — a list
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. tear — from crying
  17. squash — to crush
  18. stock — shares
  19. pass — a permit
  20. tear — to rip
  21. squash — the sport
  22. current — electric
  23. current — of water
  24. straw — a straw man

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