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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: bay · stock · spell · stem · staff · shower · tear · bear

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. tear — to rip
  3. stock — shares
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — letters
  6. bear — the animal
  7. tear — from crying
  8. staff — employees
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. stem — to come from
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. bear — the animal
  16. shower — rain
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. spell — magic
  20. staff — a stick
  21. stock — goods
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. bear — to put up with

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