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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: shower · stock · key · wake · foot · rash · cabinet · net

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rash — a series
  4. key — for a lock
  5. stock — shares
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. shower — to wash
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. wake — a trail
  11. net — in sport
  12. foot — a measure
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. stock — goods
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. key — in music
  19. rash — hasty
  20. key — the most important part
  21. shower — rain
  22. net — for catching
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. net — after costs

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