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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: mouse · rule · firm · fork · wound · stem · current · clip

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. current — electric
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. stem — to come from
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. firm — decided
  9. firm — steady
  10. fork — in a road
  11. rule — a law
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. clip — to cut
  14. firm — a company
  15. clip — for paper
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. current — of water
  18. clip — a video
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. current — happening now
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rule — government
  23. wound — an injury
  24. fork — to eat with

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