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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: cue · spring · rock · degree · bound · stock · track · pitcher

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. track — to keep track
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. bound — certain
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bound — tied together
  8. cue — a signal
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. track — a song
  11. bound — obliged
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. degree — from a university
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cue — for pool
  17. spring — of water
  18. track — a path
  19. stock — goods
  20. spring — the season
  21. stock — shares
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — an amount
  24. rock — a stone

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