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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 116 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: straw · rule · current · lean · stem · bear · pop · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. lean — to bend
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. pop — music
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. bear — the animal
  9. net — in sport
  10. rule — a law
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. rule — government
  13. pop — soda
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. current — electric
  16. lean — thin
  17. current — happening now
  18. stem — to come from
  19. current — of water
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. net — for catching
  22. bear — the animal
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. pop — to visit

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