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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: mine · shower · bulb · stock · prune · current · snap · saw

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. current — of water
  3. bulb — for light
  4. prune — to trim
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bulb — for light
  10. mine — for digging
  11. stock — goods
  12. current — happening now
  13. snap — to click
  14. stock — shares
  15. saw — the tool
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. shower — rain
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. current — electric
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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