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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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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: bulb · club · stand · stock · shower · cold

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. shower — to wash
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. stand — to bear
  6. club — for dancing
  7. club — for golf
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bulb — for light
  10. club — a group
  11. shower — rain
  12. stock — goods
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. stock — shares
  18. cold — not warm

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