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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: shower · stock · spring · stick · pitcher · lash · fan · mark

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. shower — to wash
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. spring — of water
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. mark — a trace
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. stock — goods
  16. mark — a grade
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. shower — rain
  21. stock — shares
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. spring — the season
  24. spring — a coil

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