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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 120 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: stock · stick · straw · capital · wake · wound · stand · lash

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. stock — goods
  17. capital — a city
  18. wound — an injury
  19. stand — to bear
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. wake — a trail
  24. lash — to lash out

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