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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. row — to paddle
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. craft — a skill
  5. degree — an amount
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. stem — to come from
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. row — a line
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. degree — temperature
  13. band — a ring
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. degree — from a university
  17. stock — shares
  18. band — a music group
  19. last — finally
  20. last — final
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. craft — boats
  23. last — to go on
  24. stem — a stem cell

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