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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: tear · stock · toast · spell · track · capital · stick · fall

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. toast — bread
  3. stock — shares
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stock — goods
  8. tear — from crying
  9. capital — a city
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — the season
  12. tear — to rip
  13. spell — a short time
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. spell — magic
  16. fall — to drop
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. track — a path
  19. capital — money
  20. track — to keep track
  21. spell — letters
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. track — a song
  24. capital — a big letter

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