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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: mate · bore · game · stand · bass · stock · last · tear

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. last — to go on
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bore — to tire
  7. game — wild animals
  8. bass — low music
  9. game — a match
  10. mate — a partner
  11. stand — to bear
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bore — to drill
  16. stock — shares
  17. last — final
  18. last — finally
  19. mate — to breed
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. mate — a friend
  24. stand — for spectators

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