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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 120 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 · coach · charge · wind · cold · bowl · stick · rush

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. stock — goods
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. charge — electricity
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stock — shares
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. cold — not warm
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. charge — in control
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rush — hurry
  20. wind — moving air
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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