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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rash · current · club · ruler · tear · spring · can · stick

  1. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. can — a tin
  3. current — happening now
  4. current — electric
  5. spring — the season
  6. club — for dancing
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. club — for golf
  9. club — a group
  10. spring — a coil
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. spring — of water
  14. rash — hasty
  15. current — of water
  16. tear — to rip
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. can — a tin
  19. rash — a series
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. can — to be able to
  24. tear — from crying

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