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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 120 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: bat · wind · stock · cue · current · hand · squash · stem

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. current — of water
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. wind — moving air
  7. current — electric
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. current — happening now
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — help
  14. bat — the animal
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. cue — for pool
  19. stock — shares
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. stock — goods
  22. cue — a hint
  23. cue — a signal
  24. squash — the sport

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