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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: row · scale · staff · bulb · kid · lie · wound · stock

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. bulb — for light
  3. kid — child
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — a stick
  6. stock — shares
  7. row — a line
  8. kid — to tease
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. lie — to recline
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. wound — an injury
  16. staff — employees
  17. scale — size or range
  18. scale — in music
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. stock — goods

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