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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: fork · hand · mate · stock · rock · shower · object · scale

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. mate — a partner
  3. hand — in cards
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. rock — music
  6. object — a thing
  7. scale — size or range
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. object — an aim
  10. mate — a friend
  11. fork — in a road
  12. mate — to breed
  13. stock — goods
  14. stock — shares
  15. shower — rain
  16. scale — in music
  17. hand — help
  18. object — to protest
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. rock — a stone
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. shower — to wash

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