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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: coach · date · kick · stock · spring · rush · file · fine

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. kick — in football
  3. stock — goods
  4. stock — shares
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. file — a tool
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. file — a line of people
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. rush — hurry
  17. file — a document
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — the season
  22. date — the fruit
  23. spring — a coil
  24. fine — high quality

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