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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: stock · drill · sharp · bowl · coach · row · bat · dip

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. sharp — clever
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. drill — the tool
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. stock — shares
  9. drill — army training
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. stock — goods
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. row — to paddle
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. row — a line
  18. drill — a practice
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. dip — to sink
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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