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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: bowl · track · cold · current · lie · rest · last · stock

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. rest — a break
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. stock — shares
  6. last — to go on
  7. current — happening now
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. track — to keep track
  12. cold — not warm
  13. last — final
  14. stock — goods
  15. last — finally
  16. current — electric
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rest — what's left
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. track — a song
  21. track — a path
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. current — of water
  24. lie — to recline

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