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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 120 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: firm · stock · drill · game · cue · trunk · bark · cell

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. game — wild animals
  7. firm — a company
  8. firm — steady
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cue — for pool
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. drill — a practice
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. firm — decided
  19. stock — shares
  20. stock — goods
  21. cell — in biology
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  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