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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: can · lean · land · pop · wound · current · tear · cue

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. can — a tin
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. pop — to visit
  5. current — of water
  6. land — ground
  7. wound — an injury
  8. cue — a signal
  9. current — electric
  10. can — to be able to
  11. cue — a hint
  12. lean — thin
  13. tear — to rip
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. current — happening now
  16. lean — to bend
  17. tear — from crying
  18. land — a country
  19. tear — from crying
  20. pop — soda
  21. pop — music
  22. can — a tin
  23. cue — for pool
  24. land — to come down

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