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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: temple · stock · firm · rush · racket · roll · cold · plane

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rush — hurry
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. firm — a company
  6. cold — an illness
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. roll — a cake
  9. stock — goods
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. firm — steady
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. stock — shares
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. firm — decided
  22. cold — not warm
  23. roll — a list
  24. plane — a tool

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