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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: row · rest · cue · stock · cold · wake · roll · track

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  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. roll — on a roll
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. roll — a cake
  4. track — a song
  5. track — a path
  6. cue — for pool
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cold — not warm
  10. roll — a list
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. wake — a trail
  14. cue — a hint
  15. row — a line
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. rest — a break
  18. rest — what's left
  19. track — to keep track
  20. row — to paddle
  21. cold — an illness
  22. rest — what's left
  23. stock — shares
  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