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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
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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: stock · current · cabinet · squash · tear · bear · content · present

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. stock — goods
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. squash — to crush
  7. squash — the sport
  8. tear — to rip
  9. present — a gift
  10. content — happy
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. current — electric
  13. tear — from crying
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. bear — the animal
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. bear — the animal
  19. content — the amount
  20. tear — from crying
  21. present — there
  22. current — of water
  23. present — the time now
  24. cabinet — ministers

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