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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: spring · date · current · stock · mine · court · fall · row

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. court — of a king
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. row — a line
  7. stock — shares
  8. spring — of water
  9. spring — a coil
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. fall — to drop
  13. current — happening now
  14. date — the fruit
  15. fall — the season
  16. court — of law
  17. current — electric
  18. court — for sport
  19. fall — to drop
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. spring — the season
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. current — of water

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