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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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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: lie · swing · stock · current · race · spring · sharp · bark

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. swing — to play on
  3. spring — of water
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. spring — the season
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. race — the arms race
  9. swing — music
  10. sharp — clever
  11. bark — to shout
  12. current — electric
  13. stock — shares
  14. current — happening now
  15. lie — to recline
  16. spring — a coil
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. race — a contest
  20. stock — goods
  21. current — of water
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. swing — in golf
  24. race — humankind

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