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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: ball · tear · last · sharp · stock · rest · trunk · date

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. ball — a great time
  5. stock — shares
  6. rest — a break
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. last — finally
  10. last — to go on
  11. stock — goods
  12. date — the fruit
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. tear — to rip
  15. sharp — clever
  16. rest — what's left
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. rest — what's left
  19. last — final
  20. tear — from crying
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. tear — from crying
  23. ball — a dance
  24. trunk — of a car

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