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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: stock · pass · spell · game · plane · content · race · mouse

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. pass — a permit
  3. content — happy
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. plane — a tool
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. spell — letters
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. race — humankind
  15. spell — magic
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. stock — goods
  19. race — a contest
  20. content — the amount
  21. spell — a short time
  22. game — wild animals
  23. race — the arms race
  24. game — a match

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