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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: mouse · stock · club · wave · land · wound · object · net

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. object — to protest
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. land — to come down
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. land — a country
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. net — for catching
  14. club — for golf
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. object — a thing
  17. club — a group
  18. club — for dancing
  19. wound — an injury
  20. object — an aim
  21. stock — goods
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. land — ground
  24. wound — an injury

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