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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: wave · tear · game · rush · roll · fork · stock · content

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. fork — in a road
  7. stock — shares
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. roll — a cake
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rush — hurry
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. tear — to rip
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. content — happy
  19. stock — goods
  20. game — a match
  21. content — the amount
  22. tear — from crying
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. game — wild animals

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