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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: field · stick · rush · stock · hide · shower · pop · tube

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. pop — to visit
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. stock — shares
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. rush — hurry
  7. shower — to wash
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. shower — rain
  10. tube — the underground
  11. tube — a container
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. field — for sport
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. stock — goods
  20. field — farmland
  21. pop — music
  22. field — a subject
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. rush — to hurry

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