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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: current · rush · court · tear · squash · stock · field · present

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. field — farmland
  4. current — happening now
  5. stock — shares
  6. present — a gift
  7. squash — the sport
  8. tear — from crying
  9. present — the time now
  10. tear — from crying
  11. current — electric
  12. rush — hurry
  13. court — of law
  14. field — a subject
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. field — for sport
  17. court — of a king
  18. current — of water
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. present — there
  21. tear — to rip
  22. squash — to crush
  23. court — for sport
  24. stock — goods

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