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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: march · stock · firm · race · shower · jam · swing · straw

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  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. stock — shares
  2. swing — to play on
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. firm — steady
  5. race — a contest
  6. shower — rain
  7. stock — goods
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. swing — in golf
  13. march — the month
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. firm — a company
  16. firm — decided
  17. march — music
  18. shower — to wash
  19. race — humankind
  20. swing — music
  21. march — the month
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. race — the arms race
  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