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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: can · stock · shower · staff · fine · race · pitcher · cold

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. can — a tin
  3. staff — a stick
  4. race — humankind
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. race — a contest
  7. fine — high quality
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — employees
  11. fine — all right
  12. can — a tin
  13. cold — not warm
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. can — to be able to
  17. stock — shares
  18. shower — to wash
  19. race — the arms race
  20. cold — an illness
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. stock — goods
  24. stock — a soup base

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