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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: game · row · trunk · pop · lean · stock · ground · coach

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. lean — thin
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. ground — crushed
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. stock — goods
  8. row — a line
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. ground — the earth
  13. game — wild animals
  14. pop — soda
  15. row — to paddle
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. lean — to bend
  18. game — a match
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. stock — shares
  23. pop — music
  24. pop — to visit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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