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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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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: squash · stock · stem · kid · sharp · kick · tear · patient

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stock — goods
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. squash — to crush
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. tear — from crying
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. squash — the sport
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. sharp — clever
  15. tear — to rip
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kid — to tease
  18. tear — from crying
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. kid — child
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. stock — shares

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