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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: coach · stick · spring · rock · ground · saw · stock · fall

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. saw — the tool
  4. stock — shares
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — a position
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. spring — of water
  12. fall — to drop
  13. rock — music
  14. ground — crushed
  15. fall — the season
  16. rock — a stone
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. fall — to drop
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — a coil
  22. stock — goods
  23. saw — the tool
  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