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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. craft — a skill
  4. track — a song
  5. craft — boats
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. bank — of a river
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. cue — a hint
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bank — for money
  14. track — a path
  15. kid — child
  16. stock — goods
  17. degree — temperature
  18. kid — to tease
  19. cue — a signal
  20. degree — from a university
  21. bank — for money
  22. track — to keep track
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. cue — for pool

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