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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: stock · wave · bear · fall · rule · chest

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. fall — the season
  6. rule — government
  7. chest — of your body
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. rule — a law
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. chest — a box
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. stock — goods

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