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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 116 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: swing · fan · stock · mine · row · bat · cabinet · stick

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. row — to paddle
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. swing — in golf
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. mine — for digging
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. stock — shares
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. swing — music
  17. stock — goods
  18. row — a line
  19. bat — the animal
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. swing — to play on
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. cabinet — ministers

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