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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
468
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: mine · stock · racket · squash · capital · current · stem · wind

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. squash — to crush
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. current — of water
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. capital — a city
  9. wind — moving air
  10. stock — goods
  11. squash — the sport
  12. wind — moving air
  13. capital — money
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. current — happening now
  19. current — electric
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. mine — for digging
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. wind — to turn a key

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