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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: mark · foot · shower · stock · sharp · wake · last · bat

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. mark — a grade
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. shower — rain
  6. stock — shares
  7. last — to go on
  8. foot — a measure
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. stock — goods
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. shower — to wash
  14. last — final
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. mark — a trace
  21. bat — the animal
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. last — finally
  24. wake — a trail

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