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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: pitcher · squash · stock · ground · snap · branch · face · stick

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. stock — shares
  4. snap — to click
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. face — to point toward
  7. ground — crushed
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. ground — the earth
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. face — part of the head
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. branch — a division
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the sport
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. face — to confront
  24. branch — of a tree

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