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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: bass · hand · fall · rush · rock · clip · squash · stock

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bass — the fish
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. clip — a video
  7. fall — to drop
  8. clip — to cut
  9. rock — a stone
  10. fall — the season
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rock — music
  13. squash — the sport
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. clip — for paper
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. squash — to crush
  19. bass — low music
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. stock — shares
  23. hand — help
  24. squash — the vegetable

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