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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stock — goods
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. scale — size or range
  8. dip — to sink
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. scale — in music
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. stock — shares
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stem — to come from
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. pitcher — a jug

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