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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: stock · stem · game · coach · bulb · swing · wax · degree

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. bulb — for light
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — to grow
  7. game — a match
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. degree — from a university
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bulb — for light
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — in golf
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. stock — shares
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. swing — to play on
  21. degree — an amount
  22. game — wild animals
  23. degree — temperature
  24. stock — goods

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