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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: deal · shower · branch · cold · wound · swing · stem · current

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. stem — to come from
  5. cold — an illness
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. swing — to play on
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. branch — a division
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. wound — an injury
  15. swing — music
  16. shower — to wash
  17. wound — an injury
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. deal — to handle
  20. current — of water
  21. current — happening now
  22. swing — in golf
  23. cold — not warm
  24. current — electric

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