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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: pit · cabinet · wind · court · rash · stock · last · mouse

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — final
  3. stock — shares
  4. rash — a series
  5. court — of a king
  6. wind — moving air
  7. stock — goods
  8. rash — hasty
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. court — of law
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a hole
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. last — finally
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. court — for sport

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