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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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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 · snap · fall · net · ball · fork · cell · cap

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fork — in a road
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. fall — the season
  8. net — in sport
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. fall — to drop
  13. cell — in biology
  14. snap — to click
  15. ball — a dance
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. stock — goods
  18. stock — shares
  19. net — for catching
  20. cell — a phone
  21. net — after costs
  22. cap — a lid
  23. ball — a great time
  24. cap — of ice

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