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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: stem · fan · stock · last · hand · court · coach · wave

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. stock — goods
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. court — of law
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. hand — in cards
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. last — to go on
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. court — of a king
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. last — finally
  16. stem — to come from
  17. stock — shares
  18. court — for sport
  19. hand — help
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. last — final
  24. wave — of the sea

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